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Abby Wambach: 'I would definitely fire Jurgen Klinsmann'

Reuters

The message from United States star Abby Wambach is clear: Get rid of Jurgen Klinsmann as manager of the U.S. men's national team.

"Oh man. I would definitely fire Jurgen. Sorry (president) Sunil (Gulati), sorry U.S. Soccer, but I don't think that Jurgen and the litmus test on him has worked," Wambach said on The Bill Simmons Podcast.

Wambach, 35, who is preparing for her final match as a player Wednesday in New Orleans, has never been afraid to voice her opinion on any matter, including the issue of turf and officiating at the 2015 Women's World Cup.

She turned her attention to the men's program on the podcast, and skewered Klinsmann for his management methods.

"First of all, he hasn’t really focused enough attention on the youth programs. He says he has, I don’t think that he has," said Wambach. "I also believe that the way he has changed and brought in a bunch of these foreign guys is just not something that I believe in wholeheartedly.

"I love Jermaine Jones, I love watching him play, and I love Fabian Johnson, and he plays in Germany and is actually killing it right now after being sent home for 'faking an injury,' but I just think that this experiment that U.S. Soccer has given Jurgen just isn’t one that I’m into."

The men's team has suffered a poor string of results this year. They were eliminated from the Gold Cup in the summer by Jamaica, and have only won twice in their past eight matches.

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