Email
Print
Digg This
LOS ANGELES, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Former United States coach Bruce Arena is expected to be named Ruud Gullit's successor at the struggling Los Angeles Galaxy on Monday.
The Galaxy have scheduled a news conference for 1100 local time (1800 GMT) when the new coach will be introduced following Gullit's resignation last week. Although officials refused to comment on the Dutchman's replacement last Friday, the 56-year-old Arena had been a conspicuous figure at the Major League Soccer (MLS) club's Home Depot Center venue the previous day.
While the Galaxy were drawing 2-2 with local rivals Chivas USA, Arena sat in a hospitality suite talking to Tim Leiweke, president and chief executive of AEG, the entertainment conglomerate that owns the club.
Leiweke, who has described the team as dysfunctional in recent weeks and urged them to improve, said luring Arena to David Beckham's Galaxy would be a significant coup.
"We have a lot of respect for him," Leiweke told the Los Angeles Times.
"He's been not only part of the national team programme but he's been a part of MLS from early on so the ability to talk to him about what we're going through here and get his advice and input is invaluable.
"We'd be honoured and privileged if Bruce was part of the organisation but the conversation was really geared toward his input and his feeling on what we've done right and what we've done wrong."
WINLESS STREAK
Although the Galaxy made a promising start to this season with former England captain Beckham and U.S. international Landon Donovan in good form, they are in the middle of an eight-game winless streak.
The team lie fifth in the Western Conference and have conceded a league-high 42 goals in 20 games.
The Galaxy's flagging fortunes were dealt a further blow a week ago when former European Footballer of the Year Gullit quit for personal reasons.
Gullit, appointed in November, was replaced on an interim basis by assistant coach Cobi Jones, whose first game in charge was Thursday's derby with Chivas.
Galaxy president and general manager Alexi Lalas, instrumental in bringing Beckham to the club in July 2007, was also fired in a related move.
Arena, who coached the U.S. from 1998 to 2006, would bring a high level of experience to the Galaxy.
In his first stint as an MLS coach he led DC United to back-to-back MLS Cup titles in 1996 and 1997.
After standing down as U.S. coach following the 2006 World Cup, he took charge of the Red Bulls before leaving the club by "mutual agreement" in November.
