SWANSEA, UNITED KINGDOM – OCTOBER 7: Bob Bradley, Manager of Swansea City addresses the media during the unveiling of New Swansea City Manager Bob Bradley at the Marriott Hotel on October 7, 2016 in Swansea, Wales. (Photo by Harry Trump/Getty Images)

Jurgen Klinsmann replaced Bob Bradley as coach of the United States Men’s National Team in the summer of 2011.

Things haven’t been entirely rosy for Klinsmann, but he remains in that post today, and likely will continue to do so through at least the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Bradley, on the other hand, began a coaching sojourn that saw him first take over the Egyptian national team, before stops in Norway and France. It was in France, last season, that the Bradley-led Le Havre came up one goal shy of promotion from Ligue 2 to Ligue 1 (the French version of the Premier League.)

That performance, combined with a decade of coaching on the international stage (and eight more years of MLS head coaching experience prior to that) was enough to get him the recently-open Swansea City job, making Bradley the first American to coach in the Premier League.

Bradley is known more for stoicism and an almost reticent approach to dealing with the media, so it was a bit of a surprise when, during his introductory press conference, he took a shot at his USMNT successor:

For a man of few words, that amounts to an all-out assault. It’s a unique situation; Jurgen worked as an analyst for ESPN during the 2010 World Cup, so it was literally his job to critique the performance of the team. But considering the circumstances of Klinsmann replacing Bradley, which happened the very day after Bradley was fired. That deal for Jurgen had to have been worked out while Bradley was still employed, so it’s understandable that Bob has some lingering resentment over that particular process.

The “nice things” Bradley referred to include these Klinsmann quotes in support of Bradley’s appointment at Swansea, via the Daily Mail:

‘It is fantastic that finally the ownership group in the Premier League is giving trust to an American coach. There are plenty of good American coaches that can coach overseas, absolutely no doubt about it.

‘In Bob’s case, he’s so experienced. He went the tough route, even places after coaching the national team have been impressive. He didn’t shy away from different cultures, different countries, different languages and different approaches.’

‘It’s fantastic we have the first American coach in the Premier League. It is a huge privilege, it’s big for Bob and he deserves it.’

Bradley and Klinsmann are still connected through Michael Bradley, Bob’s son and captain of Klinsmann’s USMNT. Bob hedged a bit later on, perhaps recognizing that:

Klinsmann is doing the right thing in voicing full-throated support, as his name still carries weight in England from his days as a Tottenham striker. Bradley isn’t in the wrong, either, and if he’s opening up a bit and letting more of his personality come through, it might serve him well; he never allowed any sort of connection to form with American fans, or even the media.

English (or in Swansea’s case, Welsh) fans might not take too kindly to the idea of an American manager, but a successful run for Bradley in the Premier League does great things for American soccer.

Fortunately, there’s never been an American more qualified for that task.

About Jay Rigdon

Jay is a columnist at Awful Announcing. He is not a strong swimmer. He is probably talking to a dog in a silly voice at this very moment.