Football player Keegan Rosenberry would never trade seven unforgettable Leagues Cup games in just 24 days for a little more rest.
Six days off can feel like a blissful eternity for the 30-year-old once the competition is behind him. After having only three or four days between games over the past month, he has 90 minutes and perhaps a celebration left before returning to MLS normality.
For the Rapids captain and right-back, Sunday’s Leagues Cup match against Philadelphia Union is about more than just third place. It will also be a homecoming of sorts, as Rosenberry returns to Philadelphia, where the team that drafted him third overall in 2016 plays just two hours from his hometown.
There is no resentment over the transfer that brought him to the Rapids in 2019. For Rosenberry, the significance does not lie there.
Rather, he has enjoyed the little things: nostalgic sights, seeing family members again and even talking to the same bus driver from the airport to the hotel that he rode with as a Union player. On Sunday, before and after the Rapids’ biggest game of the year, he will enjoy shaking hands with people he hasn’t seen in a long time.
Rosenberry is much more excited about third place in the Leagues Cup and the place it would put the Rapids in the CONCACAF Champions Cup, especially given the path the 46th-seeded Rapids have taken to the final day of competition: three dramatic wins against Liga MX teams, two penalty shootouts and a crushing loss at LAFC.
“These late, dramatic wins, penalties and goals, you can’t really make them up. That’s how people become fans who maybe weren’t here before, and our fan base deserves that,” Rosenberry said. “It’s really fun to see the product we put on the field inspire them and energize them, and it gets reciprocated, and that’s what it’s all about.
“We talked about not going too high or too low, and that’s important.”
Rapids coach Chris Armas certainly had his fun during the tournament and attributes his team’s success in large part to goalkeeper Zack Steffen finding equipment worthy of (re)inclusion on the U.S. Men’s National Team.
Steffen was arguably the best goalkeeper of the tournament, making 23 saves and numerous key moments in the penalty shootout in the knockout phase of the Leagues Cup. If that’s the case, Union goalkeeper Andre Blake is a good candidate for the second best goalkeeper, with 17 saves and a spectacular penalty shootout performance against Mazatlán in the quarter-finals.
Given the form of both goalkeepers and the cinematic ending to the Rapids’ penalty shootout against Club América, a penalty shootout on Sunday would be an absolute must.
“(Blake) is a top goalkeeper for his club and country and I congratulate him on another year of excellence,” Armas said. “But listen, when it comes to penalties you have two top goalkeepers and then the gap gets narrow again. You have to put in the effort and do your job and hope that your goalkeeper can save a ball or two against all the adversities. Zack was great, he made the difference and added so much to the team in terms of quality.
“If it comes to penalties, we will take our chances and may the team that deserves it advance. But in moments like these, we have great confidence in Zack.”
Such incidents were not necessary in the semi-final against LAFC, as the Rapids were crushed 4-0 at BMO Stadium, continuing their dry spell at this venue – and their goal drought.
For Rosenberry, the short break between games can be a curse for the body but a blessing for the mind.
“These games come quickly. There’s not really a lot of time to take from the results we’ve had more than what we need tactically, other than a few things we can learn from or a few moments where we can do better,” Rosenberry said. “(The feeling of a 4-0 loss to LAFC) lasts about a day or two, we reflect on it and quickly prepare for the next opponent.”
“The team has responded great all year, even at the start of this competition (with a 4-0 loss to Portland). We came home and made up for it and it continues to be a testament to the group’s character, mentality and ability to respond in difficult times. We’ll try to do that again tomorrow.”
The game in Philadelphia starts at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday.
Want more sports news? Sign up for the Sports Omelette to get all of our analysis on Denver’s teams.
