Clint Dempsey has been fully cleared to participate in matches and it sounds like he’s even likely to start in Saturday’s season opener against the Houston Dynamo. Putting aside the caveats that nothing in life is guaranteed and that one irregular test could prove to be a massive setback, this is obviously great news for the Seattle Sounders and Dempsey.
“I would think that there's a pretty high probability of [Dempsey starting],” Sounders head coach Brian Schmetzer told reporters.
At the same time, the Sounders preached patience, not just with Dempsey’s return but with their intention to not push players too hard early in the season.