Bruce Arena Quotes

"Mexico City is a lopsided advantage for the Mexican team. With the altitude, it makes it a completely different game. But we know that when we play them anywhere else, we can beat them. We proved that tonight."

"We had a one-goal advantage and the extra player. We wanted to get the second goal."

"His leadership and ability to make saves at key moments in a game were a large factor in our success during the qualifying campaign. The fact that he is the only three-time winner of the award is a testament to the consistency, commitment and dedication he has displayed throughout his career."

"The only thing that experience tells me is you can't be 100% sure about any player."

"There's everything here for players and families to both experience the culture of Germany as well feel comfortable that this is a city that is similar to cities in the United States. And it's a perfect match: great restaurants, lots of entertainment, lot of things to do, a great hotel, great training facilities. Everything we want is here."

"Having the opportunity to get a feel for the stadium and the environment here is very valuable."

"I think you can't overreact from one game, the Norway game, and ignore the Canada game. You judge players over time, not over a game. As he continues to move forward we'll have a better feel for the direction he's headed. Obviously, he's getting better. From my perspective, I need to see if he's developing into a guy who should be a player on the World Cup roster and can help us win a game."

"Canada is traditionally a very solid team, and this game will be a good test for our domestic players as we begin the critical process of building a roster for the 2006 World Cup. We are looking forward to playing in San Diego, a city with a rich soccer history. It should be an excellent event."

"It's like going from college basketball to the NBA. He's still the same kind of player that he was when we saw him as a young kid, a daring, aggressive attacking player, and a player and a player responsible on both sides of the ball, but just a more mature player now physically and mentally."

"The Costa Rica team will play very strong, very fast in the beginning of the game, try to get an early goal and write their ticket to Germany."

"For the first time ever, we are going to demand players have the discipline and commitment to actually maintain fitness. We have seen a wide range of attitudes and actual physical conditions with MLS players in the past, and if that is the case next time around they're not going to be eligible to make the World Cup roster."

"The fact that he is the only three-time winner of the award is a testament to the consistency, commitment and dedication he has displayed throughout his career."

"The results in Guatemala (0-0) and Costa Rica (3-0 defeat) were not as critical to me. This one is. We want to end the year on a high note."

"His stock has risen considerably, and given the circumstances in our entire pool, Kerry is going to be in there right until the end when we're looking to finalize our roster."

"We view this camp and the games in January and February as critical towards our preparation for Germany."

"They're in a position we were in, you want to get it done sooner than later. This is a game where their sights are clearly to win, as it was for Guatemala the last time we were in Guatemala. It will be interesting to see."

"Over the next month or so we'll really see the value the Gold Cup had for us. Because of injuries and suspensions, a few guys had to play a bit more than we anticipated, and that can only make our squad deeper in the long run."

"The Gold Cup is the biggest headache on the schedule. We want to be respectful of the confederation championship and put our best team out there and try to win it. However, our focus has to be on World Cup qualifying. Those 10 games are the most important."

"He's shown steady improvement throughout the camp."

"We've seen great improvement out of Clint this year. He's a player who is competing for a spot on the World Cup roster and I think he demonstrated he's progressed a lot."