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There was plenty of eyebrows raised when the San Jose Earthquakes announced the hiring of Bruce Arena’s as the club’s new head coach and sporting director.
The legendary MLS coach was dismissed from his job with the New England Revolution in September 2023 after being on administrative leave for what MLS said were “allegations that he made insensitive and inappropriate remarks.”
But after being reinstated by the league in recent months, the 73-year-old was hired by the San Jose Earthquakes in the wake of finishing bottom of the league in 2024.
In his introductary press conference as the new Quakes boss, Arena addressed the elephant in the room — his administrative dismissal from his last job.
“The allegations (were that) I made insensitive remarks,” he said. “I would say that the position I hold in an organization as a sporting director and head coach is one where I’m held to a higher standard than basically anyone in our building.
“I need to be smart about the things I say and my actions, as they’re closely monitored every day. I made a couple of mistakes there.
“I accept the responsibility and am going to move forward. I would also say this about my experience in New England. I’m very proud of the work I did there. I’m disappointed in the way it ended, but I’ve learned from it.”
While San Jose have become known for their lack of spending in the transfer market under the ownership of John Fisher, Arena seemed buoyed the project that has been pitched to him.
“John Fisher and the front office has already assured me that they’re dedicating resources to help improve the club.
“My meetings with Mr. Fisher strongly indicates that he’s going to support the club. We don’t expect to be Inter Miami, believe me.
“But, we’re going to move our club up the ladder to position ourselves to be a much more competitive team. And I believe there’s great commitment on part of the owner as well as our front office.”