Why Playing in MLS Should Help Clint Dempsey and Michael Bradley in World Cup

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: April 9, 2014

commentComment        

When Clint Dempsey and Michael Bradley both initially made their returns to Major League Soccer, some United States men's national team fans became worried that playing in MLS would hurt their form heading into this summer's World Cup.

And while it's true that Dempsey's first season home last fall with the Seattle Sounders was not confidence-inspiring, the U.S.'s last international friendly, as well as Dempsey's and Bradley's performances last weekend in MLS, should give USMNT fans plenty to be positive about.

When Dempsey first returned home, it was obvious that he had become surplus to requirements at Tottenham. The move made sense from a playing time perspective—not to mention a financial perspective for Dempsey himself.

After his struggles with the Sounders last fall, Dempsey spent the offseason on winter loan to Fulham. Overall, he played seven games without scoring and near the end of his loan, there were some games when he didn't even make the bench for the Cottagers. A return to Europe was clearly not the answer.



However, now back in MLS, Dempsey is slowly seeing a return to form. In his first game this season, against Sporting KC, he didn't score but many praised his involvement in the game. Then against Toronto FC in Week Two, Dempsey notched a nice goal in the match. 



On national team duty two weeks later, Dempsey was deployed up top in a 4-1-3-2 for the USMNT. While he didn't get on the scoreboard and still faced criticism for his play, he was more effective playing higher up the pitch and did a nice job on several occasions holding up the ball in transition.



Finally, last weekend, Dempsey broke free of his goal-scoring slump with a hat-trick against arch-rival Portland.



When Michael Bradley came to MLS, many U.S. fans were apoplectic.



With just six months to go until the World Cup, th...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - International Football

Latest News


Comments

Comments are closed.

Sponsors

Bruins Tickets The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

Red Wings Tickets The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League.

Penguins Tickets The Pittsburgh Penguins are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

New York Rangers Tickets play their home games at Madison Square Garden, they are one of the oldest teams in the NHL, having joined in 1926 as an expansion franchise, and are part of the group of teams referred to as the Original Six.

San Jose Sharks Tickets The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California, United States.

Toronto Maple Leafs Tickets The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

New Jersey Devils Tickets The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League.

Washington Capitals Tickets The Washington Capitals are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C.

Buffalo Sabres Tickets The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League. Get the Sabres and all of your NHL Tickets here.

NASCAR season is on of the most attended sports in the world. NASCAR Tickets to the best tracks is a must every year. Some of these tracks are: Talladega Tickets, Lowes Motor Speedway Tickets, Pocono Raceway Tickets, located in Ridgeway Virginia you have Martinsville Speedway Tickets and southern US you have two of the most popular Atlanta Motor Speedway Tickets and Texas Motor Speedway Tickets. Don't miss all the racing events this year!

Boston Red Sox Tickets The Boston Red Sox are a member of the Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Since 1912, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park. This is one of the hottest MLB Tickets sales of any team in the major league.

New York Yankees Tickets The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the borough of the Bronx, in New York City, New York and are a member of Major League Baseball's American League East Division. Get tickets to one of the hottest games of the season Yankees Red Sox Tickets.

Chicago Cubs Tickets The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League.

Phillies Tickets The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883.

Orioles Tickets The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland.

Do you love wrestling? Get your WWE Tickets and WWE Survivor Series Tickets today!