Bruce Arena is a former soccer player and current soccer
coach of the Los Angeles Galaxy team; he was born in September 21, 1951. Arena
is a member of the National Soccer Hall of fame and was former head coach of
the U.S men’s national soccer.
Bruce Arena is considered one of the best soccer coaches in
the north of America, so he has had a great and distinguished coaching career.
He took the advantage of coaching the United States national
team at the summer of 1966 Olympics, then in the world cup 2002, and 2006 of
the same competition.
In the Major League Soccer he took the advantage of coaching
many team like New York Red Bulls , and D.C. United , in addition Arena Coached
the University of Virginia to several collage soccer championships .
Bruce Arena was goalkeeper for Cornell University before
starting his coaching career. Then he got with the United States men’s national
soccer team one cap.
Bruce Arena during playing career:
High School and college:
Arena attended Carey High school because he born in Brooklyn,
New York, and grew up in the Long Island town of Franklin Square, New York. In
his first sport activities excelling at several sports, he enforced to enter
the school’s soccer team as a defender although he wants to enter the American football,
but he was too small for this kind of sort.
Then Arena moved to goal after suspending their goalkeeper
in the game because the later hit a player in the game. Bruce Arena played for
one season with Hota S.C. Of New York City which was a local club in the
Cosmopolitan Soccer League.
Bruce Arena started his collegiate athletic career playing
both soccer and lacrosse at Nassau Community College after his graduation,
during two year in a collage near his home.
In 1970-1971 Arena was an honorable College all American
soccer player and All American lacrosse player. Then Arena played at Nassau a
future New York Cosmos goalkeeper for head coach Bill Stevenson and goalkeeper
coach Shep Messing for two years.
Arena moved then to Cornell university , he did not intend
to play soccer but the injuries between the players enforced him to be the
goalkeeper by the coach Dan Wood, so he got two awards, 1972 honorable Mention
All American , 1973 Second Team All American in lacrosse .
Arena earned Most Valuable Defensive Player honors for his
performance in backstopping the Cornell Big Red soccer team to the 1972 NCAA
Men’s Soccer Championship Final Four.
Professional:
Arena signed with the Pacific Northwest after being convinced
by Dan Wood the head coach and after being Arena unemployed from his second sport
in lacrosse with the team Montreal Quebecois because the National Lacrosse
League was folded in 1975.
So Arena was second goalkeeper in his team behind Jamil
Canal, and he coached the men’s soccer team at the University of Puget Sound.
Bruce Arena Coaching career:
College:
In 1977, he took the advantage to be the head soccer coach
and head lacrosse coach in the University of Virginia.
D.C. United:
In 1966 Arena signed with D.C. united to become the head
coach of the team in the Major League Soccer.
National Team:
In October 1998 he signed to be the head coach to replace
Steve Sampson for the U.S. national team, so he could to lead the team to reach
to quarterfinals at the 2002 World Cup but they lost in front of Germany. Arena
in 2006 was ranked 4th place in FIFA international all-time best.
He won the Gold Cup twice in 2002 and 2005 while he finished
third in 2003.
New York Red Bulls:
In July 14, 2006 he signed with New York Red Bulls, but he
and the administration of the club decided mutually to Part Company.
Los Angeles Galaxy:
Then in August 18, 2008, he signed with Los Angeles to
replace Ruud Gullit.
Personal life of Bruce Arena:
Arena has a on in the U.S. youth national teams Kenny Arena
in Major League Soccer.