Tyrone Mears has a big role to fill for the Seattle Sounders.
The 32-year-old English Premier League veteran was signed by Seattle this offseason to replace DeAndre Yedlin, the Sounders’ right back in 2013-14, who transferred to Tottenham Hotspur after bursting onto the international stage with the US national team at the 2014 World Cup.
The loss of Yedlin’s explosive speed was widely considered to have created the biggest hole on Seattle’s roster coming into the 2015 season. But if Mears’ play in Seattle’s 3-0 season-opening romp over the New England Revolution last Sunday at CenturyLink Field is any indication, he should be able to fill the void just fine.
Mears gave the Sounders exactly what they needed against the Revs, displaying solid one-on-one defending and an ability to push forward and help Seattle’s attack in a similar manner to what made Yedlin such a valuable asset. Mears also notched his first MLS assist on a perfect cross to forward Obafemi Martins en route to being named to the MLS Team of the Week.
Not a bad start.
Speaking with reporters after Sunday's game, Mears said reading the MLS game and balancing defending with attacking felt perfectly natural as he acclimates to his new home.
“[Picking my spots to go forward] is natural – it’s a part of my game,” Mears said. “I think the way attacking fullbacks are now, you have to be able to get into the final third, and you have to be able to deliver a cross. It’s not something that’s new to me.”
Martins and fellow forward Clint Dempsey both said Mears has fit in well as they’ve worked through preseason games and training – something that should only improve as the season progresses.
“[Mears] was great,” Dempsey said. “He’s come in and he’s added quality because of his experience playing in the Premier League and playing in the Championship. Having that experience gives you a little bit more composure in the final third in terms of your delivery, and I think that he did a good job of picking players out. But also I thought he was solid in terms of how he was breaking down plays and keeping possession for us.”
Added Martins: “It’s all about understanding. We did preseason together, so I understand how he crosses the ball and everything. Lucky for us, today he crossed real well, and I made my own movement and I scored. That’s what we’ve been doing since we started preseason.”
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Mears said his evolving rapport with midfielder Marco Pappa, one of Seattle’s most creative playmakers, has been instrumental as he continues to develop chemistry with his new teammates.
“Playing with Pappa – he’s a fantastic player,” Mears said. “He sucks the left back in all the time, which opens up the wide spot for me. I think we’ve got a good partnership going there. I always say that I’ve got to be defensive first, and when that space opens up, I’ll go. …The more [Pappa and I] play together, the better it’s going to be.”
Mears also highlighted the atmosphere at his first home game as evidence that he feels he made the right decision in taking his game to MLS after a career spent playing for raucous crowds in the Premier League.
“[The atmosphere] was fantastic. I said it’s the reason why I came to MLS,” Mears said. “I was asked the question by FOX yesterday, why did I come to MLS? Well, it’s to play in front of these fans. It’s a fantastic experience. It’s like going to places like Old Trafford, Anfield – you look forward to playing against those teams to play in front of those fans and hear the atmosphere, and that’s the way it is in this stadium.”
