TUKWILA, Wash. – After a tough loss on the road, Seattle Sounders FC now face a difficult challenge at home as the first place Colorado Rapids come to town on Saturday (7 p.m. PT; JOEtv, Univision-Seattle, ROOT Sports (Outside Seattle); KIRO 97.3 FM, El Rey 1360AM). Forward Clint Dempsey spoke to the media at Thursday’s training session about what the result would mean to him and his teammates.
“It’s an important game for us; we need to get points and get moving up the table,” Dempsey told reporters. “Last game they beat us so we’ll be looking to make sure we get one over on them.”
One of the biggest subplots coming out of the Colorado Cinderella story is the re-emergence of USMNT veteran Jermaine Jones. Jones has been largely credited with the Rapids success so far this season and is a player that Dempsey is familiar with through their time together with the national team.
“He’s a passionate player,” said Dempsey. “He can also pick out a pass; he can score goals. He’s someone that makes a difference so he’ll be someone you’ve got to look out for on both sides of the ball.”
Forward Nelson Valdez was a surprise late scratch from the away match at FC Dallas and did not make the trip last weekend. Head coach Sigi Schmid gave an update on his status and others at the late week session.
“They’re getting better,” Schmid said. “Valdez did more today, so that was good. [Michael] Farfan had a little bit of a setback, so he wasn’t out here today.”
Defensive stalwart Chad Marshall was absent from the training session due to an injury that Schmid was hesitant to reveal, but did however indicate that it was minor and shouldn’t affect the defender’s status for the weekend.
“He just felt a little bit of something at the beginning of the Wednesday practice so we pulled him out very early,” said Schmid. “I talked to him this morning and he said he feels really good.”
Dempsey talks Copa and what he hopes to accomplish with the USMNT
The Copa America Centenario is looming large in North America as we inch closer to the June 3 kick off. This year’s competition will be particularly momentous in that it marks the 100-year anniversary of the historic tournament. The buzz is perhaps loudest in those cities chosen to host, one of which being Seattle, home to USMNT veteran and longtime captain Clint Dempsey.
“It’s an opportunity to do well in a major competition on home soil,” Dempsey told reporters. “An opportunity to get back on track after not winning Gold Cup or the Confederation Cup playoff game. So that’s what we’ll be looking to try to do.”
Dempsey’s name appeared on the 40-man preliminary roster released earlier this May but with the official 23-man roster not being released until Saturday, Dempsey remains cautiously optimistic that his name will be on it.
“If I’m a part of things, (I’ll be looking to) just get things back on track for the States and moving things in the right direction,” he said. “I grew up watching Copa…so to be able to be a part of that would be awesome.”
The United States will compete in Group A, one of the tougher groups in the tournament with Columbia, Costa Rica and Paraguay, which includes Dempsey's teammate Nelson Valdez.
“I think it’s a difficult group, but at the same time, when you’re in a good competition you’re going to play against a good team,” Dempsey said. “We’re ready for the tournament and looking forward to the challenge. What better opportunity are you going to get to win a major competition then on your home soil.”
