Arena named coach-general manager of Galaxy

Aug 18, 2008 - 10:33 PM CARSON, California(Ticker) -- Bruce Arena is looking forward to the challenge of turning around the Los Angeles Galaxy.

Arena, the all-time winningest coach for the United States national team, was named the new boss and general manager of the Galaxy on Monday.

Bringing Arena to Los Angeles comes a week after a firestorm in which general manager Alexi Lalas was fired and coach Ruud Gullit resigned

"While it has been a very difficult week, I believe the end result is a very positive step forward for the Galaxy," team president Tim Leiweke said. "Bruce is the best coach for the Galaxy and certainly one of the best coaches in the history of the league.

"We have always felt that the Galaxy should aspire to be the club that sets the pace and tone in Major League Soccer. I believe Bruce sees it the same way and will put us back in that position."

Lalas, a former member of the American World Cup team, was dismissed after failing to lead the team to the playoffs the last two years. The Galaxy are struggling at 6-8-6 this season and are winless in their last eight matches.

"I realize we have a lot of work ahead of us and I am optimistic that with the support of management, our coaching staff and the players, we will move forward to positioning this team to qualify for this season's MLS playoffs," Arena said.

"My ultimate goal is to win championships and a build a club that all of our fans will be proud of."

Meanwhile, Gullit left for personal reasons.

Arena also brought in former Chicago Fire coach Dave Sarachan to be his top assistant, a post he also held during the 2002 World Cup.

It will be the third tenure in MLS for Arena, who resigned as coach of the New York Red Bulls in November after they were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs for the second time in as many seasons.

However, Arena has been highly successful in both MLS and on the international level. The 56-year-old led D.C. United to back-to-back MLS titles in 1996-97 before leaving to become the U.S. national coach.

He helped lead the Americans to a pair of World Cups. He guided the U.S. to the quarterfinals in 2002 but was let go after a disappointing showing in the 2006 tournament.

Sarachan has served as an assistant to Arena at Virginia, D.C. United and with the U.S. National Team. He also was the head coach for the Chicago Fire for 4 1/2 seasons, winning Coach of the Year honors in 2003.