Coming off last weekend's tussle with the Colorado Rapids, the Kansas City Wizards certainly came out a little worse for wear.
Forwards Eddie Johnson and Yura Movsisyan and midfielder Sasha Victorine have spent the past week recuperating from injuries suffered in the physical 2-2 draw. Add striker Scott Sealy to the roll and there are four Wizards who regularly see significant time who could be slowed with injuries for Sunday's match with Chivas USA at Arrowhead Stadium. Save for Sealy, the walking wounded might be down but not out.
While both Johnson and Victorine cut their training short Friday, officially listed as probable and questionable respectively, they are expected to be in blue-and-white come Sunday evening.
"The coaching staff has done a very good job of managing players in who needs to take time, who needs to get [healthier]," said Wizards assistant coach Chris Henderson. "They're game players; I would expect both of them to be ready."
It's doubtful that a sore ankle could stop the magical season that Johnson is putting together anyway. Johnson has put away 12 goals in 11 appearances, including nine in his last four.
With Johnson likely to play, the player who replaced him late in Sunday's match, Movsisyan, will be on the bench in case the K.C. attack needs a jolt late against Chivas.
"It's just another ankle injury for me ..." said Movsisyan, who thought he had broken his ankle after coming on in the 81st minute. "It looked pretty bad, [but] I've been practicing for two days and it feels really good."
Movsisyan's stay on the field was only eight minutes, but he left by choice.
"Since I wasn't 100 percent, I didn't want to jeopardize any time for the team. I wanted to come out and give a guy who wasn't injured a chance to help out more than I [could]," he said.
Sealy, the Wizards' top goal scorer a season ago, wishes he could be contributing, but he has made a decision regarding his injury-plagued season.
"My groin is still a little bit sore, and that type of injury takes a little while to heal. For the entire season, I've been playing injured and not 100 percent," he said, referring to an ankle injury that had previously limited him. "I've come to the point where I need to be 100 percent to contribute to the team, and I'm going to sit out until I feel like I'm 100 percent. Next time you see me back it's because I think I'm ready to play."
In Sealy's case, injury has impacted his performance.
"Definitely, I tried, basically did it for the team, to be a presence up top with Eddie gone. It just wasn't right, just wasn't feeling good, and it showed in my performances," said Sealy.
It's the Wizards' hope that Johnson, Victorine and Movsisyan are ready to go against a Chivas USA side that has won two games in a row on the road. Incredibly, those wins nearly doubled the club's all-time road win total, which now stands at five.
"They're a fun team to watch at The Home Depot Center. At home, they play well, and now they have two road wins and are trying to build on that," said Henderson. "They're an organized, attacking team. ... [Midfielder Francisco] Mendoza is really crafty, and both their strikers up top [Ante Razov and Maykel Galindo] can score at any time."
However, Galindo could be slowed because of an apparent hamstring injury received in Thursday's 2-0 win in Giants Stadium against the New York Red Bulls. He came off in the 73rd minute with a slight limp.
Injuries aside, the 6 p.m. CT encounter is an important one for both sides as they battle for a spot in the MLS Cup Playoffs. Each team currently sits third in their conference and in playoff contention. A slip though could mean an injury to their playoff hopes.
Bob Rusert is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League soccer or its clubs.
