Jurgen Klinsmann to Make U.S. Soccer Coaching Debut Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET; 30-Minute Pre-Match Special on ESPNEWS; Michelle Beadle and SportsNation Live from Lincoln Financial Field
ESPN2 and ESPN3.com will present the United States Men’s National Team vs. Mexico on Wednesday, Aug. 10, at 9 p.m. ET live from Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia as World Cup champion Jurgen Klinsmann makes his debut as head coach of the U.S. team after being named to the post on July 29.
The match marks the first meeting between the two rivals since the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup final on June 25 when Mexico scored four unanswered goals in a come-from-behind 4-2 victory over the U.S. team in front of more than 93,000 fans at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.
Highlights of ESPN2’s presentation:
- ESPN’s lead commentator team for soccer – Ian Darke and John Harkes – will call the match;
- Award-winning studio host Bob Ley will be joined on-site by lead analyst Alexi Lalas and ESPN Deportes’ Jorge Ramos;
- Rob Stone (USA) and Monica Gonzalez (Mexico), the former Mexico Women’s National Team player who served as an ESPN analyst during the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup, will report from the sidelines;
- Taylor Twellman, the former leading MLS striker and U.S. National Team player, will contribute analysis from site on ESPN digital platforms;
- Conversation with Jurgen Klinsmann: ESPN’s Julie Foudy will sit down with the new U.S. team coach – who served as an ESPN analyst during the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa – for an exclusive television interview. Excerpts will air on SportsCenter and as part of studio coverage surrounding the match;
- ESPN has added a 30-minute SportsCenter Special: USA vs. Mexico Preview show on ESPNEWS (8:30 p.m.), and expanded the programming window on ESPN2 to include 30 minutes of post-match analysis, commentary and opinion from Harkes, Lalas, Ramos and Twellman with host Ley and additional reporting by Stone and Gonzalez.
Prior to the match, ESPN2’s popular SportsNation will be live from a stage outside Lincoln Financial Field (4 p.m.) with Michelle Beadle and guest host Twellman – the first time the show is originating from a soccer match.
ESPN Deportes will also provide extensive news and information coverage from site on SportsCenter (7 p.m.) and Futbol Picante (pre-match — 8 p.m., and post-match – 11 p.m.). ESPN Deportes Radio will report live from Lincoln Financial Field with play-by-play commentator Omar Orlando Salazar, Hernan Pereyra and additional field reporting from Dionisio Estrada (covering Mexico) and Jose Del Valle (USA).
Alexi Lalas on the U.S. National Team under new coach Jurgen Klinsmann …
ESPN’s Lalas, who competed against Klinsmann as a player and worked alongside him during ESPN’s presentation of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, offers his thoughts on the new U.S. coach and the national team:
On the players invited to Klinsmann’s first U.S. National Team match:
“This is an interesting collection of players (Jurgen) Klinsmann assembled. For the players, it is their first interaction with a Klinsmann-led team or camp. Whether they are rookies or veterans, they need to leave a good impression for the new coach in camp and playing against Mexico.”
On where the national team goes from here:
“This is the start of a new era. He (Klinsmann) wants to show that he is building on the past and doing new things going forward. There is a lot of curiosity and some mystery surrounding Jurgen Klinsmann with what he is going to do for and with the U.S. national men’s team program.
“Whatever he does, it all kicks off with a match against USA’s biggest rival – Mexico. I want to see how the Klinsmann era starts off on and off the field.”
On what to expect from the new U.S. team coach:
“We should expect big and bold actions from Klinsmann. We should expect a restructuring of the US Soccer program, and a re-examination of how we think of ourselves as a soccer nation.
“But ultimately, we can’t lose sight of the fact that his main job is to improve the men’s national team and to steer them to success in qualifying, and most importantly, the World Cup.”
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