KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Sporting Kansas City could get two key starters back for the Eastern Conference Knockout Round, although both are listed as day-to-day.
Midfielder Benny Feilhaber and right back Igor Juliao both traveled with the team on Wednesday, ahead of Thursday night's match against New York at Red Bull Arena (8 pm ET; ESPN2 in the US, TSN1 in Canada | TICKETS).
Both went down in the first half of last Thursday's 2-0 away loss to Deportivo Saprissa in CONCACAF Champions League play, Feilhaber with a right ankle sprain and Juliao with a strained left hamstring. Neither appeared in Sunday's 2-0 home defeat to the Red Bulls in the regular-season finale, although Juliao was also on yellow-card suspension for that match.
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“All these guys are going to be game-time decisions, seriously,” manager Peter Vermes told reporters after Tuesday's training session. “We've still got guys banged up from the game on Sunday as well.”
Juliao appeared to be the further along of the two on Tuesday, seeing limited action in training while Feilhaber did some regeneration work and continued his treatment regimen.
“I felt better today and I want to play in the game,” the Brazilian said through a translator. “I think Sporting needs me. But we will have to see what the coach says.”
Feilhaber also said he hopes to return for Thursday's match, which will send the winner on to the Easten Conference Semifinals against top-seeded D.C. United.
“Right now, it's a pain issue and it's not going to get worse,” he told reporters. “It's a sprain and that's all. I've gone through it many times in the last few years, and it's really about the pain subsiding and letting time allow it to do so. We're doing everything we can to help it along right now, but it's just going to depend on how it reacts the next couple of days.”
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Feilhaber's past experience with ankle sprains is one reason he thinks he could be good to go against New York.
“It's hard to tell how long the process will be,” he said. “but based on the past it's usually about a week, and that's when the game will be.”
Steve Brisendine covers Sporting Kansas City for MLSsoccer.com.
