This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Sandy • If Real Salt Lake had needed its leading scorer last weekend against the Chicago Fire, Yura Movsisyan said he would have been on the field.

"I'm not one to sit back," he said Tuesday as he completed a full training session with his team. "I don't like injuries. I'm not one that will pull back from an injury and not want to play because, at the end of the day, this is what I do, this is what I love, and I don't like to watch my teammates be out there and me sit out."

But with RSL handling the Fire 3-1 Saturday night at Rio Tinto Stadium, Movsisyan was able to stay on the sideline Saturday, giving himself another full week to prepare for his team's upcoming away match with the Seattle Sounders.

"If I needed to play, I would have played," said Movsisyan, suffered a strain late last month against the San Jose Earthquakes. "But thank God my teammates did a fantastic job closing out the game and scoring a lot of goals so we don't have to risk anything and I can take my time."

On Tuesday, Movsisyan looked lively as RSL trained. Afterward, he said he felt "very good" and would be ready to play if called upon Sunday in Seattle, where the striker won the 2009 MLS Cup with RSL the last time he visited.

"It's up to the coach whether he wants to play me 90 or a minute," Movsisyan said. "I'm ready for it."

Sunny future

RSL midfielder Sunday Stephen worked up a sweat Tuesday, running laps around the team's practice field while his club mates trained.

It has been about six weeks since the Nigerian midfielder collided with New York Red Bulls goalkeeper Luis Robles and suffered multiple facial fractures, and "Sunny" is inching closer toward his return to the field.

RSL coach Jeff Cassar said the team has targeted Aug. 22 as a rough date for the midfielder's first full-contact practice.

"But before that, he'll be able to do a lot of fitness, so maybe we can hit the ground running right around that date," Cassar said.

The midfielder's return will certainly be welcomed around Rio Tinto Stadium.

"I like the way we're playing right now," Cassar said. "But … he's a very experienced player. He breaks up plays defensively and also starts our attack. More than that, it helps our rotation to be fresher, to be stronger in every game that we play."

Wake-up call

Have Clint Dempsey and the Seattle Sounders finally woken up?

After a disappointing first half of the season — including parting ways with longtime coach Sigi Schmid — the Sounders finally looked like one of the league's powerhouses in a 3-1 win against Orlando over the weekend. Dempsey scored a hat trick in the victory thanks in part to a pair of assists from forward Jordan Morris.

"They could have been this dangerous before but for whatever reason it wasn't happening," Cassar said. "But if you were looking, they were creating chances. … Now it feels like they've just got a little bit more confidence and they're being a bit more aggressive in their play."

Twitter: @aaronfalk —

RSL at Seattle

Sunday, 5 p.m.

TV • FS1