CARSON, Calif. - For five years, Bob Bradley groomed his trademark coaching style with the Chicago Fire.
Now that Bradley is in charge of the United States national team, a pair of his former Fire players have the same perspective on their former club coach as they had before.
In many ways, it's the same old Bob.
"He's grown as a coach," Fulham defender Carlos Bocanegra said, "but he still has the same qualities he had before: he's intense, he's always prepared, he has us prepared, trainings run really smooth and I think he does a good job of getting the players prepared."
Bocanegra is one of 18 players - and one of five former MLS players - who will represent the USA against China in San Jose on Saturday as the squad prepares for the upcoming CONCACAF Gold Cup.
Four Chivas USA players are on the squad as well, but only Jonathan Bornstein was named to the Gold Cup roster.
For his first task as full-time head coach of the U.S. national team, Bradley will guide the Americans against the Chinese. But it's what follows that Bradley is focused on.
"Bob has us doing the things he likes us to do. We have a few meetings here and a few meetings there but we're preparing for China right now in mind that we have the Gold Cup coming up," Bocanegra said. "He's not focusing all of our interest on China right now. He's kind of still looking at the big picture."
At training this week, Bradley's sharp voice could be heard cutting through the air and commanding players as they ran through drills and short-sided games. It's the same voice and commands that DaMarcus Beasley first heard when he originally broke in as a professional athlete in 2000.
"His coaching ability and his coaching style has always been the same to me," he said. "I haven't seen too much of a change."
Having a familiar face leading the squad is beneficial to both parties, Beasley said.
"We understand each other as far as what he wants from me and what I know about him as being a coach and what I need to do to play to him," he said.
Beasley earned his first cap in nearly the same setting six years ago. At 19 years of age, he played the entire match against China for the U.S. on Jan. 27, 2001 in Oakland. Beasley credited Bradley with helping develop his national team career, and it is something that has stuck with him since.
"Him and John Ellinger were the ones who pushed me to the national team when I was 17 when I got my first camp. He was very influential in that," said Beasley, a two-time World Cup veteran. "He and (former U.S. coach) Bruce Arena are very good friends and he kind of pushed Bruce to give me a chance to get into camp when I was still young. For him to do that and to have the backing of me that I can play that level at that age was very uplifting."
Bradley has a 3-0-1 mark as U.S. coach but served on an interim basis until he was hired full time on May 16. The U.S. last played a match on March 28 - a scoreless draw against Guatemala at Pizza Hut Park. This camp is the first under a full-time Bradley, though players said they have noticed little change in Bradley the interim head coach or Bradley the Chicago Fire head coach.
"It's intense and competitive and everybody is enjoying it," Bocanegra said.
Luis Bueno is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
