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[QUOTE="IthacaMatt, post: 2619006, member: 405"]
People forget that Klinsman had some terrific success as US Men's national team coach.  They won something like 13 matches in a row at one point.  They beat teams like Italy away.  They had some big wins and he encouraged them to play with more flair, and to try to control the ball better.

That said, he had some major shortcomings.  Tactically, he was naive, and didn't communicate well to the team.  Sometimes, the team just didn't buy in to what he was trying to do.  But tactics and repetition (things that somebody like Antonio Conte is great at) was just not in Klinsman's DNA.

He brought new ideas to the team, but he lacked the ability to implement those ideas, and he was kind of a vindictive guy.  His decision to drop Landon Donovan from the 2014 team will probably be the thing he is most remembered for, unfortunately.

Donovan was kind of an arrogant pr..k himself, and people forget, but he quit the team (and MLS) for about 8 months during World Cup qualifying to go "find himself" and get hungry to play the game again.  Meanwhile, the US team was struggling with qualifying, and then he parachuted back in, and expected to get the Cristiano Ronaldo treatment once he returned.  Yes, Donovan was a gifted player, but he was also a huge jerk.
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