By DAN KARELL
A new injury has Hannover and U.S. Men’s National Team right back Steve Cherundolo set for another spell on the sidelines.
The 34-year-old fullback picked up a knock in training on Tuesday, and after the diagnosis being worse than initially feared, Cherundolo is set for arthroscopic surgery on his ailing left knee. The club has not listed a timetable for a return to first-team soccer.
“The injury is frustrating, as is the timing. But I am in good hands with the medical team here and I’m convinced that this operation will help me to come back and train without pain,” said Cherundolo on the club’s website.
Cherundolo, who missed the May/June World Cup qualifiers and friendlies with the USMNT in order to prepare for the upcoming Bundesliga season and a run at a place on the U.S. World Cup team, played in his 300th Bundesliga match last month for Hannover, where he has been ever since 1999.
Cherundolo’s medical advisors recommended he pass on playing in the recent run of USMNT matches in order to give him the best chance of passing through the upcoming Bundesliga season healthy enough to play in the 2014 World Cup.
The latest injury is another setback for Cherundolo, who has endured a series of injuries in 2013, but he has plenty of time to recover and work his way back into the Hannover 96 rotation.
As for when he might return to the USMNT, that remains far less clear. The team’s next set of qualifiers are less than three months away.
What do you make of this news? Starting to worry about Cherundolo’s durability? Who do you see starting at right back for the U.S. in Brazil?
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