Former USMNT coach: ‘In my opinion, it’s been the best World Cup in history’

The United States men’s national team has left the Bay Area for Seattle as it prepares for a round-of-16 World Cup match on Monday against Belgium in the Emerald City.

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With one more win, the U.S. will advance to the quarterfinals for the first time since Bruce Arena coached the Americans to the round of eight in 2002.

Arena, now the coach of the San Jose Earthquakes, was asked this week about the U.S. team’s World Cup run and what he thought of the Americans’ 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina on Wednesday at Levi’s Stadium.

“I thought the crowd was tremendous,” Arena told reporters on Thursday. “The U.S. team is an experienced group. They know what they’re about, they approached the match the right way and it was a professional win.”

The knockout-round victory was the U.S.’s second in its history and first since it beat Mexico 2-0 in a round of 16 match 24 years ago. The tournament expanded this summer to 48 teams, which added one more knockout round to the bracket.

“It’s one game at a time in the World Cup, and the competition is only going to get tougher,” Arena said. “They’ve been fortunate with their draw and have faced some teams that I’d say are in the bottom half of the field.

“Belgium will be a much stronger opponent, and I don’t even know who would be next after that. The games are only going to get harder. Still, it’s a nice position to be in, playing at home with a little pressure on you. There’s nothing wrong with that. Hopefully they’re successful against Belgium.”

A victory over Belgium would send the U.S. to a match next Friday against Spain or Portugal at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, rebranded as Los Angeles Stadium for the World Cup.

Does the team’s former coach have any advice?

“My message doesn’t really matter, but we’re behind them and wish them the best,” Arena said. “I picked the U.S. as my sleeper team. At this point, there are 16 teams left, and everyone thinks France is going to win it. Hopefully, the U.S. can meet France in the final. I don’t know exactly how the bracket lines up, but that would be a great matchup.”

No matter what happens with the U.S. team, Arena is impressed by the manner in which the country has handled the global spectacle. He said it’s much better than when the U.S. last hosted the World Cup in 1994.

“We’re much further ahead now in terms of how we host major events,” Arena said. “We have quality stadiums and fields, and we didn’t have that in 1994. I don’t think we put on a great World Cup back then when it came to the playing conditions and overall experience.

“This World Cup has been almost perfect. The stadiums are tremendous, the crowds have been tremendous, and in my opinion, it’s been the best World Cup in history. I think you’re only going to see it get even better as the tournament moves forward.”