Inspiring

It’s not uncommon to come across stories of players taking a swig of beer in the supporters’ section after scoring a late goal or after a victory, but it’s extremely rare to see it casually done in the 29th minute of a Europa League playoff with the scores level at 0-0. 

Perhaps Vereya defender Ivan Bandalovski needed a little hair of the dog following last night’s session or maybe it just irked him to see his favorite brew go to waste like that, but the Bulgarian used the barley pop like it was a Cool Blue Gatorade, a move usually reserved for intramural games in college.

The result wasn’t what Clint Dempsey and the defending MLS Cup champions wanted, a 2-1 defeat to Houston Dynamo to start their 2017 season, but the USMNT player and his club will be delighted that he was able to play 90 minutes and score a goal after six months out with an irregular heartbeat.

Dempsey was sidelined last August after the issue was diagnosed, making him a spectator for Seattle’s improbable MLS Cup triumph, but he was cleared to return to play this preseason. Dempsey picked up right where he left off for Seattle, scoring their lone goal in a 2-1 defeat to Houston.