Between his first cap with the U.S. National Team, burgeoning expectations in his second MLS season, a World Cup run and signing with Tottenham Hotspur, DeAndre Yedlin has hardly had a moment to refresh since January. Seeing a window in the calendar before the hectic final stretch in the schedule, Sounders FC Head Coach Sigi Schmid gave Yedlin an extra day off this week to allow the 21-year-old defender to take a step away from the game.
After three days with his family in Santa Monica, Calif., Yedlin returned to training at Starfire on Monday with a realization of just how badly he needed a break.
“I didn’t really know how much it was (needed) before, but now coming back and finally being refreshed, it was definitely needed,” he sighed. “That’s really what I needed, just to relax and not really think about anything.”
Since returning from the World Cup in July, Yedlin has played in eight of Sounders FC’s nine regular season matches, both U.S. Open Cup matches to help Seattle reach its fifth final in six years, a friendly against Tottenham Hotspur and juggled the media frenzy at the MLS All-Star Game in Portland, where he started against Bayern Munich. All the while, he was weighing offers from Europe before ultimately deciding to sign with Spurs.
With all of those weights heaped on his shoulders, Yedlin was glad to take some time away, letting his body and mind recalibrate after a rigorous four months since he left to join U.S. National Team camp.
Upon his return, he noted that it wasn’t just one thing that brought the need for a break.
“Just an accumulation. It’s been a lot. It’s been a whirlwind,” Yedlin said. “It’s been a lot of highs and some lows, in terms of stress. Everything kind of balled into one made this break needed.”
Now with eight matches remaining on the regular season schedule, the U.S. Open Cup final and the playoffs to follow, Yedlin is ready for the final push in the 2014 season. It starts on Friday when Seattle hosts Real Salt Lake in a crucial Western Conference matchup featuring two of the top three clubs in the West.
“Anytime you’re away that long from the field, everybody’s dying to get back,” Yedlin said. “We’re going to come out with a lot of energy on Friday. This team is at its best when we come out with energy. So I’m excited to see what the outcome will be.”
