Sounder world is in a state of suspense.

Blaise Nkufo will soon be eligible for play. In fact, his name goes on the roster for eligibility on Thursday, July 15, a date that can prove highly significant.

Nkufo could conceivably make his Seattle Sounders debut the evening of July 15 in a road test at D.C. United. With last Sunday’s 1-1 tie in Seattle with FC Dallas the Sounders secured one point for a total of 16 on the season.

The team is running out of opportunities to make the playoffs. Coach Sigi Schmid thinks that it will take 45 points to insure a playoff spot, meaning that the Sounders will have to garner 29 points over the regular season’s final 14 games.

This need for points means not being satisfied with a tie and one point on the road but going for three points and wins, which takes us to the significance of the D.C. United matchup.

The Sounders have rancid memories stemming from a 3-2 loss to D.C. United at home in the final game prior to the World Cup break. A breakthrough Thursday night could elevate Seattle to 19 points.

So the question is: Will Nkufo make his Sounders debut that pivotal July 15 date, his first on the roster?

Efforts to ascertain what will happen on Thursday sought after Sunday’s match were met with uncertainty. This is apparently a decision for which one must stay tuned.

If Nkufo does not debut on Thursday then his next opportunity for action is the highly publicized friendly Sunday at noon at the Xbox pitch of Qwest Field against Scotland’s Celtic FC.

Sigi Schmid at Monday’s practice session at the Starfire Training Complex turned his attention toward Nkufo and what he means to the Sounders:

“We can’t expect him to be the savior. He’s going to be one member of the team. But he is an experienced player who has shown a knack and ability to finish goals.

“If we can create some of the things we have created and he’s on the end of them we are confident he can finish them. So it’s a matter of us seeing where he is at, how he is in terms of his fitness, how quickly he can adjust and adapt to the team and the league. But obviously we expect him to have an impact for our team.”

Midfielder Freddie Ljungberg injured his ankle in the final practice session prior to last Sunday’s game with Dallas and was forced to miss action. Schmid also addressed the subject of the popular Swedish veteran and his availability against D.C. United:

“We’ll see. We will see how his ankle comes through today. Ankles are funny things. I had numerous ankle injuries when I played but sometimes it takes a few days, sometimes it takes longer. We wanted to see him push today and see how it would feel after practice and tomorrow (Tuesday).”

Osvaldo Alonso made his return to game activity on Sunday in the second half. What can be expected from Alonso Thursday night?

“With Ozzie, it’s just a matter of fitness,” Shmid explained. “I don’t think he’s ready for a full game from the standpoint of fitness but it’s a matter of him continuing to be out there in training. With the game coming up Thursday, we can’t really do extra work with him. But for sure next week after the Celtic game doing some extra work with him at the beginning of the week will help him get back his fitness.”

Schmid also commented on tight schedule demands this week. The team played Sunday night against Dallas and will be leaving shortly for the nation’s capital and Thursday’s match with D.C. United. From there it is back home quickly and the Sunday afternoon friendly with Celtic FC.

“It’s harsh,” Schmid conceded. “That’s why we trained today because tomorrow we’ll lose a training day for those guys because it takes a full day to travel back there.

“So sometimes you can’t get onto a field, you just try to get to the gym to do some aerobic stuff. It makes it a little tougher. But on the same token, we have had a pretty tight stretch of games over the last two weeks and I am confident we can maintain our rhythm and guys will be ready to play on Thursday.”

The Sounders’ coach praised Miguel Montano for his first start and stated that he had “played well.” The Colombian was credited for “playing with a lot of energy” and “creating things.” He called the red card that caused Montano’s banishment “unacceptable.”

To many in the stands and those observing video replays, the red card seemed excessive. As Kasey Keller said afterwards, “If they had been giving out red cards like that in the World Cup final today they would have had about six players left.”

Michael Seamon was praised for his pluck in starting his first MLS game despite an ankle injury that had to be taped up. Schmid thought that he was at around 85 percent for the Dallas match and that he played well.

It will be determined later how much action Seamon is likely to see Thursday night.

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