Real Salt Lake are 7-2-3 since July 4, have vaulted into the midst of the Western Conference playoff picture and seem to fear no one.
That bullishness was personified by young left back Danilo Acosta after Saturday's 2-0 win over Seattle.
Conducting a postgame interview in Spanish with journalist Francisco Vazquez at rain-soaked Rio Tinto Stadium, the RSL Homegrown was interrupted by some jawing from Clint Dempsey as the Sounders star headed towards the locker rooms, apparently alluding to some lingering conflict from the match.
Acosta, 19, did not hesitate to jaw right back at his elder counterpart, grinning and reminding Dempsey of the game's final score...
El jugador de los @SoundersFC@clint_dempsey furioso tras la derrota de su equipo..... por su parte @dannyacosta117 feliz por la victoria pic.twitter.com/zGa6woyrCX
— Francisco Vazquez (@franvamo) September 24, 2017
When asked by Vazquez about the interaction with Dempsey, Acosta responded: “He’s upset after the game.
“But when it comes down to it,” he added, “we won the three points and they’re leaving upset. It doesn’t matter.”
It's unclear what Dempsey was saying, or what exactly he was upset about. OPTA statistics from the match don't show any fouls committed by either player on the other, although Dempsey did drift into Acosta's area on many occasions as he tried to spark the Seattle attack.
