Sounders forward Clint Dempsey took another step towards being able to compete during the regular season, playing the entire first half of his team’s 1-0 loss to the San Jose Earthquakes in a scrimmage in Tucson, AZ on Tuesday. Dempsey played just 30 minutes of his team’s pre-season opener on Saturday, so the additional 15 minutes was a positive step. Still, he was kept off the field in the second half as the Sounders continue to ease him slowly back into games.
Dempsey hasn’t played a regular season game since late August, after which he was diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat.