Bruce Arena Player Quotations

I wasn't certain how he was going to do, but I can see differences in Steve between now and 2001 when he first came to us. He is a much more experienced player and he is a very good player, and if he remains healthy, there's no reason to believe that he won't be in our first 11.

He scores goals in big games and that's what a real goal scorer is about. Obviously, he's one player that we have to focus on.

This is an opportunity for some fresh faces, and we're going to see what they are about at the international level. This game is important because it can eliminate some players from consideration, and it can improve the situation of others.

The results in Guatemala and Costa Rica were not that critical to me. This one (against Panama) is. This is the one I want to win so we can end the year on a high note and at the same time, give some promising players some opportunities to play and start formulating some strategies for 2006.

I don't think too many players played themselves onto our World Cup roster tonight, to be honest with you.

I don't think too many players played themselves onto a World Cup roster tonight. There were some good performances for some, others were not so good.

I don't think too many players played themselves on our World Cup roster tonight. There were some solid performances, but nothing that would make a strong case for a variety of players. It was okay for some players, others not too good.

I don't think the result of the game is that important, as much as is the performance of the players. Some of the players are on the fence so to speak and have their last opportunity.

Over the past week he's finally physically and psychologically recovered from his turf toe injury. That has been an obstacle for Eddie for a good six months or so, and that's completely past him. ... I think over the next couple of months Eddie should be back in full form and be a player who's challenging certainly for a spot on the World Cup roster.

Some were hunches, others were potential, others, we have until June 12 and think we can turn this player around.

We were able to use this game as an opportunity to see some players. The part that I felt was valid was that we watched our players have to deal with coming from behind, being down a goal.

That was a dominant performance by our team tonight; I'm very pleased. A number of players tonight made statements; hopefully they'll continue to make statements.

Despite the fact we've had a rash of injuries and some conflicts with clubs, we feel this game is an excellent test for our veteran players in Europe as well as some new players in the team.

I thought he's had a tough go at it. But I think you see today he's a player with a really great upside. We're going to move him around as best we can and put him in a position to make the World Cup roster.

With only one international fixture date prior to the World Cup, this is an important opportunity for our players based in Europe to demonstrate their form and fitness.

Some of the players are on the fence, so to speak, and have their last opportunity to show - basically the European-based players. For our players it's also very good for them to be in a venue where they also get to play Italy and feel somewhat comfortable in this venue before we actually come back for our final preparations.

He's an extremely graceful athlete. He's a player with an excellent first touch and great vision. He has very good attacking qualities. But we've seen him in what I would call an amateur level.

We see in Eddie a player with great potential, and certainly the injury put him back. He acquired a reputation that people expected a lot out of him, and I'm not copping out of that. We do expect a lot of Eddie, but at the same time he's a young player and he's getting there. His best soccer is probably for the next World Cup in all honestly. He's got a bright future, and we're hopeful he's moving forward.

Nothing is set in stone. But for the most part, I think we have a nucleus of 14, 15 16 players who we could pencil in now. ... We'll just have to wait and see.

When you cut to the chase, that's what defenders are supposed to be about and that's his strength. Any time you have a solid presence in the heart of your defense that gives confidence to the goalkeepers and the players around him.

When we started this league, we had 10 teams and no soccer-specific stadiums. Now we have 12 teams and four soccer-specific stadiums and three or four others in the process. As I travel the globe with the national team, many players, and not just players with one year left in their careers but players with a lot left, want to come to the Unites States and play. Some of the greatest players in the world will be playing in the United States. I really believe that.

Landon is an experienced player. He's a player we will look to not only lead us but to be important in our attack.

I think Donovan and Beasley once again are players that we will count on. Bobby Convey (Reading) has the potential to help us in a World Cup, Eddie Johnson (Kansas City Wizards ) has the potential to help us in the World Cup.

If I'd grade us, I'd say a C. We can't worry about it. We have to remember that it's January and a lot of players have been away from the game for a while.

If he's healthy we have two months to see if he can get fit to play in a World Cup. It's not like we need to rush him back into everything. We know the kind of player he is. There's a lot of quality there and if, over the next couple of weeks, we see steady improvement he's obviously going to get pretty strong consideration for the final roster.

The nuance with the U.S. team in qualifying is always, 'How do we blend our domestic- and foreign-based players? Now it's more complicated because we probably have more players abroad than ever before.

Canada is traditionally a very solid team, and this game will be a good test for our domestic players as we begin the critical process of building a roster for the 2006 World Cup. We are looking forward to playing in San Diego, a city with a rich soccer history. It should be an excellent event.

Our domestic players, who are still out of season, are very unfit for games at this level. You could see the fatigue set in for a number of our domestic players kick at about the 65 to 70-minute mark.

All in all, to get 16 players in, and getting a win, that's a positive.

For the first time ever, we are going to demand players have the discipline and commitment to actually maintain fitness. We have seen a wide range of attitudes and actual physical conditions with MLS players in the past, and if that is the case next time around they're not going to be eligible to make the World Cup roster.

Look, they're attacking players so they need to create goal-scoring opportunities. Those are my expectations of attacking players and they're players who are capable of getting goals. It would be nice to see one hit the back of the net.

I think you can't overreact from one game, the Norway game, and ignore the Canada game. You judge players over time, not over a game. As he continues to move forward we'll have a better feel for the direction he's headed. Obviously, he's getting better. From my perspective, I need to see if he's developing into a guy who should be a player on the World Cup roster and can help us win a game.

We're not going to ignore anybody at this point in time. The league will be operating in early April and we'll have a chance to look at those games to see if any of those players are a possibility for our April game or are still considerations for our roster.

There are other players who could be here who aren't here because of their positions in the league. To get some favors in return ? that means a lot to send those players back. This is a time we could do it.

You always need to be patient, realizing the amount of time off these players have had. The expectations can't be too great. We realize it's going to take some time to settle in.

The Guatemala game will provide us with another good opponent as we continue to prepare and evaluate players for the 2006 World Cup roster.

We want to give some promising players some opportunities and start to formulate some strategies for 2006. There is no easy way to establish a player at the international level. The easiest way is to get them on the field.

We look forward to the challenge against Guatemala. Obviously, Carlos Ruiz is the one player we're certainly well aware of. We know from qualifying they have a very good team, so it should be a real good game in Dallas. We look forward to our first visit in this wonderful facility.

These are just opportunities to evaluate players as we move forward, but you don't make decisions based on one game. Generally, as a rule of thumb, if you get a point on the road in qualifying, it's a pretty good result. The fact that we played with a new group this game, the result's OK. Would we have liked three points? Sure. But that's the way it is.

It's an opportunity now for a number of players who haven't received a whole lot of minutes in the first three games to show us what they're about.

My suggestion is that a better way to manage the game is just tell the player to take the jewelry off. That's hard to do when you have a young referee. Maybe a little more experience, maybe he'll disregard what the rule book says there and use maybe a little more common sense.

What this group has managed to do is not let anything get in the way of their goals in qualifying and winning games. We miss a player due to an injury or a suspension, they don't blink an eye, they just move forward. If they're in games where the officiating may be a little bit questionable, it doesn't bother them. They just keep their concentration and get after the task at hand.

This match is a great chance for our players to show that they should be nominated for the World Cup.

Although we will be playing with a less than full roster, this game will provide an outstanding opportunity for some of our players to show they deserve strong consideration for the World Cup roster.

He enjoyed what we did. He liked our methods, and he felt the things we do are what players like. And when he reinforces that to me, that helps me. Soccer aside, he's a friend. . . . I did my best to get him involved back in the game again. He was in kind of limbo a bit.

Looking at this pool of players and still being competitive, our objective is still to win.

I think there's some disappointment in some players because it was an opportunity for them to try to convince me that they belong on our roster for the World Cup. Most did not have a strong argument; some did.

We have some extra numbers in positions where we can afford the opportunity to look at some of the European players in this game and rest some of the domestic players. An example of that would be Eddie Pope and Jim Conrad. Based on play over the past month and a half, they would be included in this roster if we were simply basing it on performances. But we have guys we need to look at now.

We went through an important year in 2005 where neither Eddie Johnson, John O'Brien, Claudio Reyna nor Cory Gibbs were around much due to injuries, and those are four players that you would think are clearly going to be on our roster for Germany.

There's everything here for players and families to both experience the culture of Germany as well feel comfortable that this is a city that is similar to cities in the United States. And it's a perfect match: great restaurants, lots of entertainment, lot of things to do, a great hotel, great training facilities. Everything we want is here.

I'm real pleased with this seven-week camp we've had to bring back players into the swing of things.

The thing we wanted to accomplish with these games on Sunday and Monday (was) to give a number of players 90 minutes for the first time in a long time. Out of both games, we had 15 players who played a full 90 minutes and two others that played 90 minutes over two days and that's a real plus right now.

It's like going from college basketball to the NBA. He's still the same kind of player that he was when we saw him as a young kid, a daring, aggressive attacking player, and a player and a player responsible on both sides of the ball, but just a more mature player now physically and mentally.

We have probably an additional three, four, five players that we that could have chosen. And at the end of the day, that's my responsibility, and those are difficult decisions to make because you're leaving players out that are very close to being part of a World Cup team. I feel for those players.

We've seen great improvement out of Clint this year. He's a player who is competing for a spot on the World Cup roster and I think he demonstrated he's progressed a lot.

The issue for Tim, like it is for all of our players in Europe, is how much they play and how well they play.

We have a number of players who are forcing my hand and remaining in the picture. It is pleasing that we will have a number of choices. We need to watch over the next couple of months. It's still early. But I think a number of players tonight made a statement.