Top Stories

Johnson’s injury not as serious as first feared, Sounders could play him in first leg vs. RSL

Photo by ISIphotos.com

That sound you hear is the Seattle Sounders’ breathing a collective sigh of relief.

Eddie Johnson’s hamstring injury sustained in the first half of the Sounders’ loss to the Los Angeles Galaxy this past Sunday was not as serious as first feared, and there is an outside chance he could play, according to the Seattle Times’ Joshua Mayers.

MRI scans on Monday revealed the knock to be a slight strain, easing the fears of head coach Sigi Schmid, the Sounders fans and rest of the organization.

Schmid even reportedly said that Johnson has an outside shot of playing in the first leg of the Western Conference semifinals series against Real Salt Lake on Friday, but that his leading goal-scorer should be good to return for the second leg on Nov. 8.

If Johnson cannot play Friday, Sammy Ochoa is expected to start in his place.

Do you think Johnson will play on Friday? Think he will struggle to make an impact when he does return because of the injury?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. I hope EJ starts. I want him on the pitch (if you can call it that in Seattle) when RSL dismantles the hopes and dreams of 50,000 fans.
    I don’t want to hear excuses again this year. It gets tiresome.

    Reply
    • Really JRP, you are still going on about the pitch? It got the highest FIFA rating that field turf can, its not terrible, it is better than a poor grass surface which there are plenty of in the MLS. Is it as good as a pristine grass surface? No. But if they were to use grass it would get destroyed by the NFL and college team playing there, thus it would be awful and worse than the turf.

      Reply
      • So, I have never used the plastic & rubber pitch as an excuse for losing games even though it does in fact influence what players sit and what players start for many teams in the MLS.
        Seattle should build a stadium considering ticket sales for each home game this season generated around 1 million dollars. Think of the amazing SOCCER stadium you could build with that kind of revenue coupled with concession sales. Think of the national games you could host. Think of what it would mean to the sport on the continent to have a 60,000 seat soccer stadium in this country. This is not a negative comment. This is a positive comment. Build it. Every soccer fan in Washington State should be asking the owners to get busy. It is the logical step forward.

      • JRP, there is nothing wrong with th CLink as a perfect spot for NAT team appearances that a grass/hybrid field wouldn’t instantly solve. It was voted for and designed with soccer in mind (including a grass field that ‘conveniently’ fell through the cracks once the stadium was built). With College/NFL football sharing the stadium now, it’s not realistic for grass. Once the UW Huskies get their stadium completed for next year, the hope is that a grass/hybrid playing surface will finally come to light.

      • We have an amazing soccer stadium, built in the heart of the city for an MLS team, named CenturyLink Field. You can keep your cute little suburban stadium for yourself.

  2. I doubt Johnson plays on Friday. I think Schmid starts Ochoa up front with Montero. Johnson won’t help in any other games if he plays too soon and re-injures himself. As a SSFC fan, I would hope we can at least tie RSL at home without him. We have other options that, while not as prolific, can still attack effectively.

    Rest him and play him at RSL, where counter-attack opportunities are likely to be more open and his speed is an asset.

    Reply
    • I would think that Seattle would do the opposite. The last game over there, Seattle dominated and only had ten men on the field. I would imagine they would try to go all out on the first game and try to hold RSL at the RIOT. It would be a reverse of last year, were RSL blew out Seattle and then held on for dear life in Seattle.

      Reply

Leave a Comment