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LOS ANGELES — The first name that popped into John Thorrington’s head was Bob Bradley.
Hired in December 2015 to oversee Los Angeles Football Club’s product on the field, Thorrington considered Bradley the best choice to answer the most important question the Major League Soccer franchise had in front of it.
Bigger than a stadium site, team supporters or any player who might sign, the search for a head coach needed to end well so roster moves could be considered and a competitive ethos instilled.
Bradley was in France fighting to return the country’s oldest professional football club, second-division Le Havre, to Ligue 1 when Thorrington reached out.
After departing the U.S. following a strong cycle at the helm of the men’s national team, Bradley, a native of New Jersey and a Princeton graduate, moved to Egypt in the wake of the 2011 revolution and nearly coached the African nation out of a 24-year World Cup drought.
Then with Norway’s Stabaek, Bradley became the first American coach to lead a team into the Europa League.
Seeking his next challenge – and group of players to teach – Bradley made his way to northern France.
On the final day of the season, Le Havre needed one more goal during a 5-0 win, but four shots clanked off the woodwork and it failed to earn promotion.
As competitive a man as Bradley is made out to be, he believes every job, challenge and opportunity requires finding meaning in the experience beyond winning.
“In all of that there’s the part where you still are pleased when a group accomplishes something,” Bradley said. “But that doesn’t mean in every case that you won.”
Swansea City in the Premier League came calling on Bradley next, asking that he prevent their relegation from the English top flight.
Bradley’s journey to Wales lasted only 85 days and 11 matches (2-7-2).
The first American manager in the Premier League has since said he wished Swansea City never came calling because, of course, he was going to accept the challenge. Had Swansea not walked away from Bradley, however, it might have been difficult for LAFC to secure his services.
Thorrington based LAFC’s head coach search on three factors and Bradley ticked all the boxes.
Domestic and international experience.
Enough range to improve and motivate World Cup goal scorers just the same as the kids who hadn’t operated in a professional environment before.
And the ability to implement an entertaining and winning style of soccer that can endure.
“That’s what Bob has delivered and exceeded on expectations,” Thorrington said.
Since joining LAFC in the summer of 2017, the coach has been free and clear to be “very relentless in his pursuit of the football in his mind that he wants the players to play,” said assistant coach Ante Razov, who has known Bradley for two decades as a player and coach.
Adhering to Bradley’s purpose-driven approach and attention to detail that has elevated players and inspired competitive soccer teams since the early 1980s, LAFC finished third in its conference, established a record for points by a first-year franchise and laid the groundwork for a club that aspires to be known beyond MLS.
Playing uncompromising and attacking soccer while winning, especially in the biggest moments, is among the most difficult approaches to pull off for any team. Stress tests throughout LAFC’s first season, notably during a 3-2 defeat to Real Salt Lake at home that knocked the club out of the MLS Cup playoffs, showed cracks as Bradley seeks inspiration from what makes FC Barcelona so special to watch and difficult to beat.
“I think that your ideas continue to grow and so I think for now it’s taking experiences and ideas that came along the way and having a chance to put them all together,” Bradley said.
“Bob mentions this all the time,” said defender Steven Beitashour, “when you go to Barcelona you don’t just go play and that’s it. No. You play Barcelona style. When players come here, you’re not just playing your style. You’re playing LAFC style. I call it ‘Bob Style’ but he likes to give credit to LAFC.”
Beitashour noted an uptick in intensity from the start of preseason.
“Maybe the Salt Lake loss still really hurts to talk about,” Beitashour said. “Or maybe it’s the second year now and it’s time to go.”
Having played with Bob’s son, Michael Bradley, on Toronto FC’s 2017 MLS Cup championship squad, Beitashour said “every single player that’s come here” has improved. “That’s tough. You can’t say that about other teams.”
That’s all Bradley wants to hear. Improving players so they perform in the crucial moments, then seeing them do it, is all he needs.
“Nobody is satisfied but when you have a group that likes each other, appreciates what’s going on around them, that feels good about the way we went about things – training, camaraderie, the commitment of the club – you have all that to build on,” Bradley said. “But you’ve got to stay on them to understand every one of those guys still has to be better.”
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