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USA Men's Soccer Coach Jurgen Klinsmann Set for 60 MINUTES SPORTS Tomorrow

By: May. 06, 2014
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No matter what the top U.S. soccer players on Team USA may have accomplished in the past, no one is guaranteed to make the 23-man roster that's heading to Brazil for the World Cup, says their coach, Jurgen Klinsmann. And to make sure they stay on their toes, Klinsmann ratcheted up the competition for the coveted spots by recruiting American players in Europe. Klinsmann, the former European star player and coach, is profiled by Sharyn Alfonsi for the next edition of 60 Minutes Sports premiering Wednesday, May 7 at 9:00 PM, ET, only on SHOWTIME.

"When I see experienced players... relax a second and think, 'I'm there because of who I am,' I get mad. I don't want them to do that," Kinsmann tells Alfonsi. "Because the moment you relax means you're done. You should call it a day."

Klinsmann has been accused of favoring European players, but says he recruited a half-dozen players from European leagues, most of whom are the children of U.S. servicemen, to light a fire under his team. "I want them to compete, you know?" says Klinsmann. "I want them to realize there comes in a kid, 18 years old, [who] is damn talented, Julian Green, and he's going to steal your spot if you don't watch out."

The German soccer legend knows about competition. He helped win the World Cup as a player for the West German team in 1990 and as their national team coach, took Germany to a third-place finish in the World Cup in 2006. He was named the U.S. National Team Coach in 2011 and last year coached the team to its best year ever, winning 16 games.

But this is the World Cup, arguably the biggest sporting spectacle in the world, an 84-year-old event dominated by Europeans, and in which the U.S. has never gotten past the quarter finals. Adding to the drama this summer in Brazil, the U.S. drew a tough slate of opponents for the first round. Called the "Group of Death," Team USA will have to face European powers Portugal and Germany, plus Ghana, which eliminated them from the World Cup twice before.

Klinsmann was brought in to restructure soccer in America from the top to the bottom and he's starting with the national team, looking for players who perform at the highest level of the sport. He has made progress as the team's record last year proves, but Klinsmann is realistic about the team's chances at the tournament. "I'm definitely not a magician, and I don't want to be one," says Klinsmann. "I think that where we are right now, there is already a very good team that has the potential to surprise a lot of people in this summer's World Cup."

Alfonsi's report includes interviews with Sunil Gulati, President of the U.S. Soccer Federation, Roger Bennett, co-host of the popular podcast "Men in Blazers," and Team USA players Clint Dempsey, Tim Howard and Jozy Altidore. She also traveled to Germany with Klinsmann to trace his childhood and phenomenal success as a soccer player and coach.



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