EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — US national team general manager Earnie Stewart laid out a framework for the hiring of the next head coach in a nearly hour-long roundtable discussion with media at MetLife Stadium on Thursday afternoon.
Stewart, who said he’d like to have a coach hired by the end of 2018, also said there’s a plan for the reintegration of veteran USMNT players, but there is no rush to do so because the team doesn’t play a meaningful match until next summer’s Concacaf Gold Cup.
“I wouldn’t say it’s a hurry,” Stewart said. “It’s really simple. At one moment we have to qualify and the best players play. Apart from you being 18 years old or 29 years old, that’s the case.”
Stewart, who started in the newly-formed role a month ago, lauded the current plan interim coach Dave Sarachan and U.S. Soccer has implemented since the failed World Cup qualifying bid nearly a year ago.
Since taking over for Bruce Arena, Sarachan has called in a group of young players for the six international friendly matches since, as well as the first two matches of the Fall Kickoff Series, including Friday night's contest against Brazil (7:30 pm ET | FS1, UniMás, Univision Deportes) at MetLife Stadium
“I think Dave has done that really well in making that choice in lets just bringing these young kids in and making sure they gain their experience and keep going forward,” Stewart said. “I think that’s a good process, I think it’s great that it’s happened. Dave has done an excellent job.”
With the average age for each camp around 23 years old, players like Tyler Adams, Tim Weah, Weston McKennie and Zack Steffen have garnered valuable experience, while established veterans like Michael Bradley, Jozy Altidore and Brad Guzan haven’t been called in since that loss in Trinidad last October.
While it’s likely the current group will form the nucleus going forward, Stewart said there will be opportunities for veteran players to again be invited into camp.
“There is now a runway and a pathway — one for the coach, but two for these [young] players at the same time — that they can gain great experience,” Stewart said. “Those players who have already shown themselves, we know exactly who they are and what we’re going to get from them.”
Stewart said the most likely moment veterans will be back in the fold would be for next summer’s Gold Cup, a competition he views as the first truly meaningful games since last October.
“The potentials are also very important, in trying to find a good mix between the potentials and how far can they reach and how far can they reach because we are giving that platform and podium together with those who are still considered the best of the United States,” Stewart said. “We’ll go into this qualifying stage and a bit before that because soccer works pretty simple — you’re as good as your last game. You have to win games as well. There will be a mix of that at some point, yeah.”
And when it comes to the Gold Cup, Stewart said he and the coaching staff will discuss getting the right mix of players, balancing choosing young players who have the the biggest window of growth and bringing back veterans who have valuable international experience.
“Winning is important so when Gold Cup comes here, yeah we want to win that,” Stewart said. “Together with the coaching staff we’ll have good conversations about those potentials.”
