WASHINGTON – For a club badly in need of good news, some might be coming soon for D.C. United in the form of a healthy Nick DeLeon.
The second-year midfielder has been participating in the first portion of training sessions this week, then putting in work on the side as he continues to recover from a strained right hamstring suffered March 23 against Columbus at RFK Stadium.
“It’s good. My leg feels really good,” DeLeon said Thursday after training. “I’m making strides. Hopefully I’ll get in next week [against Houston]. That’s the goal, but we’ll see.”
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This Saturday will mark six weeks from the time of DeLeon’s injury, which was the general timetable the club announced for his recovery. United’s next match won’t come until May 8 when D.C. play host to the Dynamo.
Last year, the 22-year-old scored six goals for United and assisted on four more, and in four matches this season has three shots in 301 minutes played. He said he hopes to participate fully in training by Sunday or Monday and that everything has gone according to plan as it pertains to his recovery.
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Should DeLeon be healthy by next Wednesday, he could provide a much-needed boost to an attack that has scored just four goals in eight matches.
“If anything, just raise the energy," he said. "Go out there and work hard. The guys see me working hard, they see one guy giving it everything, and it raises their level as well. That’s pretty much my goal. If I do come in, it’s just to raise the tempo and get us a dang win. We need a win.”
