SAN JOSE, Calif. — If the San Jose Earthquakes are to become the first side to register a goal against the Vancouver Whitecaps in 2012, it won’t be Steven Lenhart doing the scoring.
The Quakes announced on Friday that Lenhart will miss San Jose’s home match against Vancouver on Saturday (7 pm ET, watch LIVE online) due to a strained right hamstring. The injury had been bothering the bruising 25-year-old for a “couple of days,” according to head coach Frank Yallop, before the team shut Lenhart down early in training on Thursday.
A San Jose official said that Lenhart could be back next weekend, when the Quakes visit the New York Red Bulls.
In the meantime, Yallop will have to pick a replacement from a number of possibilities. Alan Gordon and Khari Stephenson could be used as target men ahead of four-goal man Chris Wondolowski. If Yallop chooses Simon Dawkins or Tressor Moreno, they would likely play underneath Wondolowski, who has 38 goals in MLS play since 2010.
Geoff Lepper covers the Earthquakes for MLSsoccer.com. He can be reached at sanjosequakes@gmail.com.
