For those who haven’t already seen the injury report that New York City FC released today ahead of their home matchup against the New England Revolution tomorrow, let me spare you the suspense: it’s not good. As a matter of fact, there is a word that comes to mind when I look at any such list. And that word is “catastrophic.”
Let’s go through some names, shall we? As a matter of fact, here’s the complete list:
- QUESTIONABLE: D – Alex Callens (Knee)
- OUT: F – Jo Inge Berget (Adductor)
- OUT: M – Yangel Herrera (Ankle)
- OUT: D – Cedric Hountondji (Hamstring)
- OUT: M – Jesus Medina (Hamstring)
- INTERNATIONAL DUTY: D – Maxime Chanot
- INTERNATIONAL DUTY: M – Rodney Wallace
- INTERNATIONAL DUTY: M – Ismael Tajouri-Shradi
- INTERNATIONAL DUTY: M – Ebenezer Ofori
Yup. That is 9(!) players listed as being unavailable, questionable, or out on international duty. Six of these players could very well be considered perennial starters for the Boys in Blue, making matters even more complicated.
But with two more games to play this week in the span of four days, NYCFC doesn’t have the luxury of waiting these out. So, the question remains: who among the warm bodies on the training ground are capable of starting tomorrow against the Revs?
First, let’s get the obvious out of the way:
- David Villa will start at the striker position
- Sean Johnson will start in net
- Anton Tinnerholm will start at right back
- Alex Ring will start at defensive midfield
- Maxi Moralez will start at attacking midfield
- Sebastien Ibeagha will definitely take up one of the available center back spots
OK, so that’s six positions covered. Five more to go. This is where it can get interesting and vary from person to person.
