Three Red Bull New York players are pushing closer to returning from injury ahead of Saturday’s home match against San Diego FC.
Justin Che, Cameron Harper and Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty have all returned to full team training and are making encouraging progress. The trio missed the Red Bulls’ 3-0 defeat to St. Louis CITY SC on September 30.
Red Bull New York head coach Michael Bradley was forced to field a lineup that was missing 12 first-team players against St. Louis.
Che (ankle), Harper (hamstring) and Marshall-Rutty (hamstring) did not recover in time, while Julian Hall, Adri Mehmeti, Ronald Donkor, Matthew Dos Santos, David Ruiz, Mijahir Jimenez, Rafael Mosquera, Dennis Nelich and Omar Valencia were all away on international duty.
With players returning from their national teams and Che, Harper and Marshall-Rutty nearing a return to match action, the Red Bulls will have a deeper pool of starting XI and substitute options on Saturday.
Che Could Return Against San Diego FC on Saturday
Bradley expects Che to be available for selection “very soon.” The 22-year-old defender missed three consecutive MLS matches after he suffered an ankle injury on September 9 when the Red Bulls visited Los Angeles FC.
“We’re hoping very soon,” Bradley said of Che during Thursday’s press conference. “The international break was good for him. He was able to get good work. Obviously, whenever you have an injury that keeps you out for longer than just a few days, part of the return to play is just kind of working through the steps.
“You go initially from therapy and rehab to then on the field and building yourself up in terms of the right football movements, the right physical loading on the field. Then obviously that leads into a return to team training. So he’s worked his way through all of that in a really good way. We’re hoping that he is ready to come back into the picture in the very near future.”
Bradley: Harper, Marshall-Rutty Are ‘In Good Places’ in Recovery Process
Bradley also indicated that Harper and Marshall-Rutty are closing in on a return to match action. Marshall-Rutty has been sidelined for three straight matches, while Harper only missed the defeat to St. Louis.
“Like Justin, they’re all in the same category,” Bradley said. “Which means that they have worked themselves through rehab and return to play in a good way. They’re back in team training.
“Now, we’ll have to decide when is the right time to come back into the squad? When do they start? When are they available but come on as subs? How do we build up minutes? It’s a week with three games. So that part will also factor in. So those are the things that we’ll have to work through. But in terms of the recovery and that process, they’re in good places.”
Red Bull New York and San Diego FC are scheduled to kick off at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday at Sports Illustrated Stadium. The match will be broadcast on Apple TV.
Check back on Saturday for a full match preview.
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