Photo by ISIPhotos.com
By DAN KARELL
The first-placed Montreal Impact lost on Saturday, but on Monday, they were given a huge boost as captain Davy Arnaud took part in the technical portion of training with the team.
Arnaud has been on the sidelines since May 1 after he suffered a concussion in his club’s 6-0 victory over Toronto FC in the Canadian Championship. Unlike some other cases, Arnaud’s concussion problems have lasted more than a month and a half, but hopefully for the 32-year-old midfielder, they can be just something from the past.
“Once you can get back to doing the things that you normally do and once you get back on the field, it makes you feel like you’re yourself again,” Arnaud said on the team’s website. “But today, for me, was the biggest relief. It made me feel good to be back on the field with the guys.”
Arnaud said he was expecting to take part in heading and finishing drills either on Tuesday or Wednesday, and though he didn’t have any idea when he might come back, it’s looking more of a question of when, not if, he returns in the next few weeks.
Here are some more stories from around the league:
KEON DANIEL CALLED UP TO T&T FOR GOLD CUP
While the Montreal Impact look set to get one of their midfield leaders back into the lineup soon, the Philadelphia Union will be losing one of theirs for potentially a month.
Keon Daniel has been selected to be on the 23-man squad for Trinidad and Tobago at this summer’s Gold Cup, with the attacking midfielder set to join up with his countrymen after the Union’s next match on June 23 against the New York Red Bulls.
Daniel is set to miss at least four Union matches while he is gone, and if the Soca Warriors make a run to the Gold Cup final on July 28, Daniel would miss a total of six matches.
Depending on what U.S. head coach Jurgen Klinsmann decides, the Union could also miss leading scorer Jack McInerney for the same amount of time if he is called into the U.S. Gold Cup squad.
RED BULLS TO MOVE INTO NEW TRAINING FACILITY
The New York Red Bulls have not been afraid to splash the cash with regards to signing big name talents and building a beautiful new stadium, but since 2007, they’ve been training at a local university’s soccer fields.
That is, until this week.
Monday marks the opening of the Red Bulls new training facility in Hanover, New Jersey, featuring three fields, two grass and one turf, as well as buildings to house the locker rooms and other administrative needs.
“We’ve got our own home where we could really prepare,” Red Bulls sporting director Andy Roxburgh said to Big Apple Soccer earlier this month. “We’ve got everything there from meeting rooms to ice baths to a gymnasium, everything. The place will be great.”
The Red Bulls are using the training facility this week in preparation for their next match, against the Philadelphia Union on June 23.
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What do you make of these reports? Glad to see Arnaud back on the training field? Can the Union replace Daniel’s production while he is gone? Happy the Red Bulls finally have their own facilities?
Share your thoughts below.