Seattle Sounders: Clint Dempsey Wins MLS Goal of the Week (Video)
By Paul Taylor
Seattle Sounders: Clint Dempsey Wins MLS Goal of the Week (Video)
Expectations are at an all-time high for the Seattle Sounders this season. This is unsurprising, given that they finished last year with the best record in the league and fell agonizingly short of a place in the MLS Cup Final.
Along those lines, the Sounders couldn’t have started 2015 any better, comprehensively beating the New England Revolution 3-0 at CenturyLink Field. As if to put an exclamation mark on the win, Seattle’s third goal has been named MLS Goal of the Week:
I thin we can all agree that was a beautiful sequence of passes by the Sounders. However, while soccer is a team game, I wanted to concentrate more specifically on the goalscorer, Clint Dempsey.
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The US national team captain is a perfect example of how the team’s expectations are also relevant on a more individual level. Make no mistake about it, this is an important year for Dempsey.
The 32-year old has enjoyed a career that most American players would love to have, including a successful spell in England, playing for Fulham and Tottenham Hotspur. In fact, Dempsey set the record for the most goals by an American in the Premier League, with 57.
The Nacogdoches, Texas native has also proven himself on the biggest stage, playing for the United States in three World Cups. Overall, he has scored 40 goals in 112 appearances at the international level.
And yet, it still feels like there is more to come from Dempsey. Yes, he enjoyed a successful first campaign in Seattle, scoring 15 goals (seventh best in the league) and being named to the All-Star team.
Mar 8, 2015; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Sounders FC forward Clint Dempsey (2) gives a thumbs-up to the fans following a 3-0 victory against the New England Revolution at CenturyLink Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
However, there were times during last season when Dempsey seemed to be running on fumes. This is often the case for players who spent the previous summer competing in the World Cup finals.
Fortunately, this is not the case in 2015. As such, Sounders fans are hopeful of seeing an even more productive campaign from the 2004 eighth overall MLS draft pick, hopefully ending with him hoisting the MLS Cup.
One person who believes Dempsey will have a big season is his coach Sigi Schmid, as he told Jerry Brewer of The Seattle Times: “I think you’re going to see more from him this year. He was not able to get a break last year.
“This offseason, Clint needed that break mentally and physically. I think he’s capable of doing more than last year.”
For his part, Dempsey admitted he was exhausted after last year’s World Cup: “I was run down, but I got back and the team helped me work through it, and I wasn’t going to make it an excuse.
“At the end, we came up one goal short (of making the MLS Cup Final). Now, I feel refreshed, and it’s great to get to go through the whole preseason with the team, and now we can build on our first win of the season.”
This has all the makings of a special season for the Sounders. And you can bet that Dempsey will do everything within his power to help his team finally reach the summit.