ORLANDO, Fla. – FC Dallas winger Brek Shea may be a little worn down following a cross-Atlantic trip from Italy, but he still wants a piece of the Houston Dynamo on Saturday night (6 pm ET, ESPN3.com).
The Texas rivals will face off in the consolation match of the Disney Pro Soccer Classic after finishing in second place in their respective groups.
“I don’t think there are friendlies when we play Houston,” Shea told MLSsoccer.com after his first practice back with FC Dallas on Friday afternoon. “Both teams take it pretty serious. I’m excited.”
Although he admits to being jetlagged and having a bit of a sore back from all the travel, Shea is eager to be part of the proceedings.
“I don’t know what the plans are. I want to play, but I definitely couldn’t play 90 minutes,” Shea said.
That’s because the FCD winger is coming off playing 73 minutes for the US national team on Wednesday against Italy in a historic 1-0 victory in Genoa.
“I think they were pretty upset,” Shea said. “I think we did shock them and shocked a lot of other people.”
His FC Dallas teammates gave him a proper welcome back on Friday with a club tradition called the “Tunnel of Love.” When it’s time to celebrate a new contract, the birth of a child or someone’s birthday – in this case, Shea’s 22nd this past Tuesday – the players form a tunnel and celebrate by spraying the honoree with water.
While it’s good to be back home, Shea realizes that this week will be a microcosm of his 2012 season, the most demanding of his career to date.
“I have a lot of stuff with the national team, the Olympic team and Dallas,” Shea said. “I have to take care of myself, eat right, get enough sleep and be smart.”
