Clint Dempsey plays in first match since being sidelined by heart condition

Clint Dempsey is back, or at least beginning to make his way back. The Seattle Sounders star played in a preseason match on Saturday, his first game action since being sidelined with an irregular heartbeat last August.

Dempsey played 30 minutes in the match, as was the plan, in a preseason friendly vs. the Portland Timbers.

"His recovery is going as scheduled," Sounders manager Brian Schmetzer said afterward. "That was 30 minutes ... we couldn't give him anymore. Next game we'll ramp him up a little more. We'll have to get doctors' clearance. We're taking it very carefully."

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Dempsey's return was never guaranteed. What was supposed to be an absence of a couple weeks turned into a month, then the remainder of the 2016 season. And while he made plans to play with the United States in January camp and then the March World Cup qualifiers, that didn't come to be and Seattle general manager Garth Lagerwey at one point said that they weren't sure if he would play again.

Things started to look better after the new year. All of the updates on Dempsey over the last month have been positive. He began training and had met all of the doctors' benchmarks. Getting back onto the field was another big step.

Dempsey played underneath striker Will Bruin in the match, with Nicolas Lodeiro cutting in from the right. Schmetzer will have to be creative figuring out how to get Dempsey into the team, and Bruce Arena will have to do the same with the United States, but the tactics that go with Dempsey's return are secondary. For now, just that he's returning is what matters.