Seattle

Bruce Arena says he expects Clint Dempsey to be back playing in March

Published Jan. 5, 2017 2:39 p.m. ET

Ryan Rosenblatt

Clint Dempsey's status has been up in the air for months as he continues to deal with issues that caused an irregular heartbeat. In the latest update on when the forward might return, United States manager Bruce Arena said that he thinks Dempsey will be ready for the start of the Seattle Sounders season in March and then be available for the national team's World Cup qualifiers later in the month.

Arena's status update doesn't really clear much up because last time the U.S. boss talked about Dempsey, he said that the forward would probably be part of the January training camp. He isn't on that team, though, and in between Arena's updates Sounders general manager Garth Lagerwey said that he wasn't sure if Dempsey would ever play again.

“Whether he plays soccer again, what level he can play, how long he can play, etc. Those are all things that we don’t know,” Lagerwey said just before Christmas.

All the while, Dempsey hasn't commented on his status publicly. There is Arena with a moving timeline and Lagerwey simply saying they haven't a clue.

Obvious a heart problem is much more serious that some typical muscle injury. And with a constantly moving timeline -- remember, Dempsey was first sidelined in August and expected to return quickly -- it really does sound like it is a very fluid situation. Hopefully, things get sorted out and Dempsey is healthy again. Arena is targeting March and that would be great news for the U.S., the Sounders and Dempsey.

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