By Arun Kumar, IANS,
Washington : Indian-American Sunil Gulati, credited with the rise of the US football team, is faced with a tough question – to sack or keep coach Bob Bradley after the team’s World Cup loss to Ghana.
Allahabad-born US Soccer Federation president Gulati’s decision would have been simple and swift if the US had failed to advance to the second stage of the World Cup, or had the Americans reached the quarterfinals. Fire him in the first case and keep him in the second.
But as the Washington Post pointed out the campaign ended in the round of 16, a 1-2 loss to Ghana on Saturday.
“And while many factors, including player development, style of play and tactics, will factor in Gulati’s verdict, the performance of the national team in the sport’s ultimate competition will undoubtedly weigh heavily,” it said.
“Will he conclude that Bradley’s accomplishments over the past 3 1/2 years, culminating with a first-place finish in Group C at the World Cup, and vision for the next four years warrant a contract renewal?
“Or will Gulati deduce that Bradley took the programme as far as he could and that the risk of letting it grow stale is too great?” it asked.
Bradley’s contract, which guaranteed him $600,000 this year plus bonuses, expires Dec 31. The Post quoted his New York-based agent, Ron Waxman, as saying he did not want to comment.
Gulati was attending a global forum in Cape Town and won’t comment until Monday, it said.
It was Gulati, 50, who oversaw a coaching change in 2006, dropping Bruce Arena, the programme’s most successful boss, after the US team’s winless performance in Germany.
Negotiations commenced with Juergen Klinsmann, Germany’s World Cup coach that year, but when talks unexpectedly broke down, Gulati turned to Bradley, a long time Major League Soccer guide, on an interim basis before hiring him in early 2007.
Gulati, who grew up playing football in Nebraska, was re-elected USSF president in February. He was first elected president in March 2006 after serving as vice president for six years.
Former USSF president and Major League Soccer founder Alan Rothenberg has called Gulati the “single most important person in the development of soccer” in the US.
(Arun Kumar can be contacted at [email protected])