U.S. reportedly hires Klinsmann as nat'l team coach

	Jürgen Klinsmann has been linked to the U.S. job ever since he stepped down after coaching the German national team to a third-place finish at the '06 World Cup. Simon Bruty/SI

SAN FRANCISCO (SI.com) -- The U.S. Soccer Federation will name German legend and former Germany national coach Jürgen Klinsmann as head coach of the United States men's national team, according to a report by Foxsports.com.

Klinsmann has been linked to the job ever since he stepped down after coaching Germany to a third-place finish at last summer's World Cup. He will reportedly be officially announced as the U.S.' new coach in the next two weeks.

Klinsmann and USSF president Sunil Gulati have held lengthy discussions about the possibility of the former German star forward succeeding Bruce Arena, who coached the team for 7½ years and was let go by Gulati after the World Cup. A source told The Associated Press that negotiations are ongoing and no deal has been reached yet.

As a coach, Klinsmann is respected for turning a staid German team into an exciting, flashy group, which went against the methodical sterotype often attributed to die Mannschaft. Klinsmann will have to similarly turn around a U.S. team that is in desperate need of new ideas and better ways to utilize its significant talent.

The United States is scheduled to play its first game since the World Cup on Jan. 20, an exhibition against Denmark in Carson, Calif. A Feb. 7 exhibition against Mexico in the Phoenix area also has been discussed.

Two tournaments highlight next year's U.S. schedule. The Americans will defend their title at the CONCACAF Gold Cup, the championship of North and Central America and the Caribbean, to be played in six U.S. cities from June 6-24. The U.S. team also was invited to the Copa America, the championship of South America, to be played in Venezuela from June 26-July 15.

Among Klinsmann's other challenges will be to name a new captain now that Claudio Reyna has retired from international play and to improve the U.S.' youth system.

The 42-year-old Klinsmann is fluent in English, lives in Newport Beach, Calif., and has considerable knowledge in the U.S. game. He was considered the best choice from a group of candidates that included former Argentina national coach José Pekerman, Manchester United assistant Carlos Queiroz and MLS coaches Bob Bradley and Peter Nowak.

As a player, Klinsmann enjoyed a 17-year career that included stints with VfB Stuttgart, Inter Milan, AS Monaco, Tottenham Hotspur and Bayern Munich. He also has 108 apperances for the German national team between 1987 and '98 and was a featured striker on the team that won the '90 World Cup in Italy.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.