Ante Razov has known Bob Bradley a long time, long enough to realize the sight of the MetroStars coach in a suit is a rarity.
"Never," Razov said. "Actually [Chicago Fire midfielder] Chris Armas' wedding, that's the one and only time."
The second time was on the sideline Saturday night at Giants Stadium when Bradley and assistant Mo Johnston were formally dressed for the club's game against the Columbus Crew.
"Alexi [Lalas] asked me to wear a suit," Bradley said. "I think he feels my image need a shakeup. It was that or a red goatee so I chose the suit."
The new dress code is the first off field change instituted by the new president/general manager of the Metros.
"If we win and (he's) wearing a swimsuit, you bet he'll be out there in his Speedo," Lalas said. "The fact is, and this is just a philosophical thing with me, I believe that come game time, coaching is done. There needs to be a separation -- and a visual separation -- between the coaches and the players."
Youri Djorkaeff, for one, likes the new formal look for Bradley.
"He looked like Arsene now," Djorkaeff said, referring to Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger.
Lalas said he liked what he saw from his new team, although it's hard to imagine he had a chance to see that much of the match. He spent the entire 90 minutes in the stands, signing autographs, meeting fans and listening to their concerns.
"It's about going out there and promoting. It's also about gathering information," Lalas said. "I need to know what's not going well and there were a lot of times when people came up and said, 'Hey, can I take two minutes. This is what I think should happen, this is a problem that I have,' whether it's individual or collective and that goes in the bank."
Dylan Butler is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
