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- Janusz Michallik is a retired U.S. soccer defender and current soccer coach and television sports commentator. Michallik moved to the United States with his father, a former Polish national team player, at the age of 16. His father had previously spent time in the U.S. in 1976 when he played for the Hartford Bicentennials of the North American Soccer League. While Michallik played for the junior Polish national team, he never played for the senior team, making him eligible for the U.S. team once he gained his citizenship. In 1983, Michallik began his professional career with Gwardia Warszawa. He played 10 games before his family moved to the U.S. In 1984, he signed with the Cleveland Force of the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) and played a single season with the team. He continued to play indoor soccer with his next two teams, the Louisville Thunder and Canton Invaders of the American Indoor Soccer Association (AISA), winning championships with them both despite only playing one season with each team. In 1988, he tried out with the Dallas Sidekicks of MISL, but while he played in the pre-season he was not offered a contract by the team. In 1990, Michallik moved to outdoor soccer with the Boston Bolts of the newly established American Professional Soccer League (APSL). He then moved to the New York Centaurs of the A-League, the successor to the APSL. While he played outdoors with the Centaurs he continued to play indoor soccer with the Connecticut Wolves of USISL. In 1991, U.S. coach Bora Milutinovic called up Michallik to the national team. That year, he was part of the team which won the 1991 CONCACAF Championship. In 1992, he would taste victory again when the U.S. team won that year's U.S. Cup. He would go on to earn 44 caps and score a single goal as a tough defender. He was key to the U.S. preparation for the 1994 FIFA World Cup, playing in 12 pre-tournament games and starting in 7. As hosts of the 1994 FIFA World Cup, the United States qualified automatically, thus not having to qualify through the CONCACAF region's 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification tournament. However, he was left off the roster for the tournament itself and retired from the national team later that year. In 1995, Michallik earned 5 caps and scored 1 goal with the U.S. Futsal team. In 1996, the Columbus Crew of Major League Soccer drafted Michallik in the 7th Round (61st overall) of the Inaugural MLS draft. He would play two seasons with the Crew before signing with the New England Revolution on January 16, 1998, for whom he would play one season before being released on October 31, 1998. He currently lives in Glastonbury, Connecticut with his wife and family where he is the Director of Coaching for FSASoccerPlus FC and the National FieldPlayer Director for SoccerPlus Camps (founded by Tony DiCicco, former Women's National Team Coach) and works as a soccer commentator for ESPN. In 2002, he was inducted into the Connecticut Soccer Hall of Fame.
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