With their first MLS game a little more than a month away, the Sounders have spent the past two weeks in Arizona building depth. In the franchise’s third year, some of the fiercest battles are taking place further down the depth chart as Seattle look to strengthen their squad.
In a conference call with reporters today, head coach Sigi Schmid stressed the importance of discovering capable backups at each position.
"Obviously, with the number of players, you want to be two deep everywhere,” Schmid said. ”You always want to put your best 11 players on the field, but if you can resolve your problems in the short-term by making a one-for-one switch, that's a lot better than having to make three moves to solve a problem.”
[inline_node:328023]To that end, Schmid has been trying out 30-year-old attacker Roger Levesque at right back, where Seattle have limited options behind starter James Riley. The Sounders manager indicated that his team's primary reserves at that position are Zach Scott, who prefers left back, and midfielder Brad Evans.
WATCH: Levesque's diving winner vs. D.C. United
Having Levesque — who has previously played as a striker and midfielder — available could strengthen the Sounders at a vulnerable position while getting the veteran some playing time. Currently, Levesque’s paths at his preferred spots are blocked by Mike Fucito, newcomer O'Brian White and currently injured Nate Jaqua.
To date, Schmid has been pleased with Levesque’s performance in the back.
“He can get up and down the field,” Schmid said. “Already in the few games he's played there, he's made a couple of good runs forward, hit a great cross for the one goal when we played an intra-squad game. That was tremendous and he's a pretty quick learner.
“He's a bright kid so he's learning the nuances of defending reasonably quickly, so for me right now, probably it's been a pretty positive experiment.”
Notebook:
Schmid singled out three young players for their consistency in training camp: defensive midfielder Servando Carrasco and goalkeepers Bryan Meredith and Josh Ford.
Should Carrasco make the roster, he could provide cover for Osvaldo Alonso, who missed time in 2010 due to injury.
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