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Brooks ruled out for two to three weeks with elbow injury

JohnAnthonyBrooksHerthaBerlinInjured2-Freiburg (Getty)

By DAN KARELL

John Brooks’ potential inclusion in the U.S. Men’s National Team squad for their upcoming two qualifiers is now in some doubt.

After undergoing medical tests on Monday, Brooks was diagnosed with a tear in his forearm and a hyperextension of the right elbow. The club announced these reports on their official Twitter account, with the timeline of two to three weeks on the sidelines before Brooks can return to full fitness.

Brooks departed in the 20th minute of Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Freiburg with the injury, which comes at a bad time for the 20-year-old central defender.

If his rehabilitation started on Monday, it would mean that the earliest he could be back is on October 7, four days before the USMNT’s penultimate World Cup qualifier in against Jamaica in Kansas City, and eight days ahead of their final Hexagonal match at Panama.

Brooks was in the USMNT squad for their 3-1 defeat to Costa Rica, though he didn’t make an appearance and was released to return to Germany after that match instead of traveling to Columbus. It looked likely though that Brooks, who made his first and so far only appearance for the USA in their 4-2 victory at Bosnia and Herzegovina, would be in the next U.S. squad, though this injury puts that into some doubt.

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What do you think of these developments? Do you see Brooks’ injury keeping him out of the next USMNT squad? Do you see Klinsmann selecting him regardless of the injury?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. Not that pressed about this because I feel Brooks is still undecided about his international allegiance and would not want to be cap tied to the USA in a few weeks anyway.

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  2. If he actually wants to play for us, then call him up for the second game and let him stand in the corner of the pitch for the last 30 seconds of stoppage time. His potential is too great to risk losing (if he’s ready to commit to us now, that is).

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  3. No way Hertha’s coach lets JK call him in if he only gets back to fitness the week of the qualifier. He’ll complain and JK will capitulate.

    Damn. Tough blow as I am sure he would have gotten some playing time (and that all valuable cap-tying performance) in one of the two games.

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  4. He is so young right now and able to read and anticipate Bundesliga level of play. He has such a high upside I predict him to be a part of the anchor of defense for the USMNT for years to come. I applaud his efforts for team and country.

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      • You mean third or fourth chances. Chandler is not a cat with nine lives. I think JK will give him only five NT lives before he gives up for good (still a lot of chances to show some desire and pride to wear the crest and that goes for any decent NT). Already JK is trying to find the answer at fullback without Timmy C.

      • Chandler’s absence from the USMNT was due to his lack of form and lack of playing time for the club rather than lack of committment (he is already cap tied) or past scores to settle. However, it appears that he is regaining his form and is getting playing time in Bundesliga so he might get a call up. If he is playing great in Bundesliga and Klinsi refuses to call him up, then we can say that the door has closed for T. Chandler.

    • Going up for headers is a defender requirement and when you do so you risk being undercut and coming down “otherwise than feet first.” Even if you aren’t up-ended you can get facial fractures or concussions from the contact. Lukaku had a nice goal where he got his bell rung. There was also a nasty aerial collision of a more deliberate variety in the Manchester derby.

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  5. The qualis are Oct. 11 and 15. First game is 19 days away and the suggested rehab period might be three weeks or more. Importantly, player injury is one of the instances when a club can legally resist a callin under FIFA rules.

    One thing that also needs to be factored in is you are not called in on the date of the game, you’re called in ahead of time and leave on a plane days ahead. Klinsi has been a little “late” but if you call in 7 days early that’s October 4 and he’s still within the rosiest rehab estimate. As with the youth CB who missed the U20s (Zimmerman??), there is a possibility that you aren’t cleared when people are called but might be cleared by the time of the games…..

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      • I might have muddled my point in the delivery, which is that even if Klinsi takes his sweet time, I’m not sure if Brooks would be cleared to play in time to be called. It might even be a Zimmerman situation where shortly after the call would be made, he is cleared and maybe even plays club soon thereafter, but he’s technically still in injury rehab when Klinsi would have to decide.

        In theory Klinsi could re-assess as time progresses with an eye towards a callin to game 2 on October 15, but I’m not sure people are factoring in he plays in Germany and the second game is a road contest in Panama. I could see bringing in supplementary players from USA and Mexico as filler for a no-meaning game in Panama if necessary, but bringing in a German based player for one game in Panama?

  6. Sucks, but what can you do?
    Although we can’t cap tie him, hope we get him to come in November. Assume that’ll be a Euro-heavy squad and our top CBs (Besler & Omar) may be tied up in MLS playoffs.

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    • ‘Sucks, but what can you do?’

      now? not much. we could’ve cap-tied him in the costa rica game, though, and avoided any chance of losing him. (for the record, i don’t think that’s likely; just responding to your question.)

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      • He wasn’t cap-tied in CR because he had a deal with JK that he would accept the call-up to see how he like the team, but did not want to play. Probably the only way he was getting in the game is if all of the other CBs had gotten injured. It’s the only thing that makes sense. Otherwise he surely would’ve come in instead of Johannson, or more likely, would have started.

      • ah, hadn’t heard about a deal. source?

        and wasn’t he on the bench? why the hell would he be in the 18 if wasn’t going to play?

      • Nate, in World Cup qualifying there is no ‘game day 18’. Everyone on the (i believe is 22) roster is allowed to dress and be a potential sub. This is a new rule for this current cycle.

      • i haven’t read that anywhere. where did you read that? JAB was quoted in Germany as being disappointed he didn’t get to play in CR. i’ll see if i can dig up the article.

      • I would be really interested to see that. Ives speculated, I think on the podcast, that Brooks was likely called in just to get acclimated to the team and see how he liked it, and that he and JK probably had an understanding that he wasn’t getting called up yet.

      • To be clear, it wasn’t confirmed, but I think he said he was like 99% convinced that was the case. And I’d trust his guess on that.

      • interesting, i don’t remember that. i’ll see if i can find the article. i did see JK said this before the CR game, and it doesn’t make it seem like JAB was just there to check it out:

        “What we saw in Bosnia from John and Aron is exactly what we have seen from them over the last 1 ½ years following them. We’ve been tracking them for a long time, communicating with them and their coaches for quite a while and they confirmed that they belong with their performances in Bosnia. It gives us more options.”

        “As far as John Brooks, he is already challenging the spots of the center backs Omar Gonzalez, Matt Besler, and Clarence Goodson, and it makes things better for us because competition will help us raise the quality.”

      • I didn’t read it anywhere. I’m just reading the tea leaves. I believe maybe Ives did mention it on a podcast as was mentioned below, but I had already come to the same conclusion. It makes the most sense. The only other scenario that makes sense is that JAB has given a 100% commitment to JK and JK is taking him at his word and didn’t see a need to put him in the game. Yes, I suppose there is a possibility that JK is just out of his mind, but I prefer to go with the more logical scenarios in the absence of concrete facts.

    • True that. But it would have been nice if he got some more time either in camp or on the field with the Nats. That is if he is in JK plans for Brazil.

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