You will find quotes below from USMNT head coach Jurgen Klinsmann prior to the friendly against Belgium. The press conference was held in the Ambassador Room at the Renaissance Hotel in Cleveland’s Public Square on Tuesday. Members of the local and national media had a chance to pick Klinsmann’s brain. Here are the highlights from the press conference:
On playing in Cleveland…
“We had an opportunity to train yesterday at the stadium and it’s absolutely gorgeous. A big compliment to the people who prepared the field and we hope to get huge support from the crowd.”
“We always hope for a big crowd, we chose Cleveland because it’s a sports city, every sport is huge here. For us playing in such a beautiful stadium, it’s awesome. Hopefully it will be an entertaining one [game] for all the Cleveland fans. For the last couple of days the people have been awesome and really nice.”
On stretch of five matches…
“We are excited to get the stretch going. We are going to see two interesting games with Belgium and Germany and then we need to be ready for World Cup Qualifying. That’s the big piece here in the next couple of weeks. We need to be ready for Jamaica and we will be ready for Jamaica.”
On playing Belgium…
“They are one of the best rising teams in Europe. This match gives us an opportunity to see where we are in terms of where the players are at right now. We still have the challenge of getting everybody on the same page because they are coming from different schedules. It also gives players the opportunity to show us some things.”
“I think we are confident to play two good games and we are already focused on Jamaica already. We need these games, the more challenging, the better. If we play two weaker teams to ‘build confidence’ then you don’t play hard enough against Jamaica.”
On DaMarcus Beasley’s upcoming 100th cap…
“We are happy for Beasley, he deserves his 100th cap and deserves to be part of this group here. His character and commitment to the national team is outstanding. What we always like about him is that he challenges himself. He’s not looking back at his career, he’s looking for the next big thing. For that, he deserves his 100th cap and many more to come.”
On Clint Dempsey being named captain…
“Clint is a personality that worked his way into his career. He’s always been hungry for the next challenge and he’s not shying away from it. I told him that we expect him to lead by example and take leadership. He is an experienced player and to look after the young guys. I think he’s done well embracing it.”
