Former Seattle Sounders head coach Sigi Schmid this week conceded that while his relationship with star forward Clint Dempsey was under some stress, he never lost the collective confidence of the locker room as the Sounders' season went off the rails.
Schmid and the Sounders mutually agreed to part ways on July 26 with the club stuck in the middle of its worst season in franchise history. A report on SoccerWire.com released the day Schmid was let go cited sources indicating more than one veteran player was upset with frustration and infighting on the team.