SEATTLE – Sometimes, a dash of Clint Dempsey is all you really need.
The Seattle Sounders star forward wasn’t technically credited with the game-winning goal that propelled his team to a 2-1 victory over the New York Red Bulls on Sunday afternoon at CenturyLink Field – that honor went to Chad Barrett.
- Armchair Analyst: Dempsey plays the hero in Seattle's win over Red Bulls
But it was Dempsey who acted as the catalyst with a leaping left-footed attempt on goal off of a Tyrone Mears cross, finding Barrett at the far post for an easy game-winning finish. The goal came in the first minute of second half stoppage-time, forcing Dempsey to trade what would have been his team-leading eighth goal of the season for his sixth assist.
“There’s very few people who could have put that ball on frame with their left foot going away from goal,” Sounders head coach Sigi Schmid said after the game. “That’s an extremely talented skill level.”
“I just did it to make sure we got the three points,” added Barrett. “I knew I was onside. But it was going in anyway.”
The win didn’t just allow Dempsey and the Sounders to snatch three big points at home and regain their Supporters’ Shield lead. It also gave them their first victory over their East Coast foes since 2011 in a game that looked for all the world like it would end in a 1-1 draw as the clock hit stoppage time.
Fortunately for Seattle, Marco Pappa’s 69th minute equalizer would afford Dempsey and Barrett the opportunity to combine for the dramatic go-ahead goal in the game’s waning moments, ensuring that there would be no draw.
“For our team to have the resilience to battle back and win in injury time, it just says a lot about the team’s character,” Schmid said. “Being able to put in the effort they put in today – I was extremely proud of them.”
The result came on a day when Schmid readily admitted his team wasn’t performing at its customary level. The Sounders were forced to play a comeback role after conceding a 36th minute goal to New York’s Lloyd Sam. Dempsey and fellow striker Obafemi Martins, normally the league’s top attacking duo, didn’t quite have their usual precision and quality throughout the contest until Dempsey's heroic game-winning assist.
“I didn’t think our game was 100 percent sharp today,” Schmid said. “A little bit of that was just fatigue and it being the third game [in nine days] and playing against a good team and a team that pressed us. But overall, I thought the guys were okay.”
The result marked a positive ending to a busy stretch for the Sounders (8-3-2), who bagged seven out of a possible nine points on their three-game home stand. Seattle now hit the road again for a matchup with Sporting Kansas City, who played the Sounders to a scoreless draw at CenturyLink Field on May 23.
