By IVES GALARCEP
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica– Michael Bradley was the first member of the U.S. Men’s National Team to walk onto the pitch at Estadio Nacional on Friday night. Some two hours before kickoff of Friday’s World Cup qualifier vs. Costa Rica, Bradley patiently walked along the grass, by himself, and surveyed the field.
Unfortunately for Bradley and the U.S., he never got a chance to actually play on that field. He injured his left ankle toward the tail end of pre-game warm-ups, forcing Jurgen Klinsmann to thrust Geoff Cameron into the starting lineup, and leaving the U.S. without one of their best players in Friday’s crucial qualifier.
Bradley joined the team on the bench walking on crutches. At halftime he returned to the bench wearing shoes on both feet and putting weight on his injured left ankle.
His availability for Tuesday is in doubt now, and with Geoff Cameron set to miss the match due to yellow card accumulation after drawing another yellow card on Friday night, Jurgen Klinsmann will likely have to turn to Kyle Beckerman to start vs. Mexico.
That is unless Bradley’s injury isn’t as bad as it seemed on Friday.