FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – It’s scary to think that Jermaine Jones, who helped lead the New England Revolution to an 11-2-2 record and an MLS Cup appearance after his arrival last August, may not have been operating at full strength through his first half-season in Foxborough.
That may well have been the case, however, as Jones underwent successful surgery on Tuesday to repair a sports hernia injury. Revs head coach Jay Heaps said Jones likely had some lingering effects from last season, and the injury was then exacerbated during the recent U.S. National Team camp.
“He’s a guy that keeps going no matter what,” Heaps said.
Jones is expected to miss 4-6 weeks, which will sideline him for the rest of the Revolution’s preseason preparations and puts his status for the March 8 season opener in doubt. Still, Heaps believes that correcting the issue now was necessary to avoid risking further injury down the line.
“It’s surgery and it’s significant enough that he’s going to miss some time,” Heaps said. “We just want to be prepared. We think it’s best to make sure that we take care of it now rather than later.
“It’s better to make sure we don’t have any long-term absences during the main part of the season.”
Jones’ absence from the upcoming Desert Diamond Cup means the Revs won’t get the chance to put out a full-strength starting lineup this preseason, but Heaps isn’t overly concerned about the midfielder’s ability to slide right into the lineup once he’s fully healthy.
New England established an identity last season and appears set to continue with a similar style and formation in 2015, meaning Jones is already well-versed on his role within the system.
“Tactically, he’s aware of everything we try to do,” Heaps said. “Right now it’s more physical. We want to make sure we have Jermaine at 100 percent and hopefully this procedure puts him there.”
