SEATTLE – With a new five-year collective bargaining agreement in place, we now know that we’ll see the New England Revolution begin their landmark 20th season on Sunday night when they visit Seattle Sounders FC at CenturyLink Field (9:30 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1).
Whether Lee Nguyen will take part in the proceedings, however, remains to be seen.
Nguyen, looking to build off a breakout 2014 campaign in which he was a league MVP finalist after registering 18 goals and five assists, is currently recovering from a groin injury, leaving his status for Sunday’s season opener up in the air.
“We’ll see,” Nguyen said when asked if he’d be ready for the opener. “I’m training with the team right now, but we’ll see.”
“It’s one day at a time for Lee and we don’t want to get too far ahead of ourselves,” added Jay Heaps. “But it’s good to have him back around the group. He brings so much to our group.”
Nguyen originally suffered the injury, which he described as a high groin strain, in early November during the Revolution’s run through the MLS Cup Playoffs. New England’s athletic training staff helped manage the injury through the postseason so Nguyen could continue to contribute en route to MLS Cup.
But when the pain lingered through U.S. National Team camp in January and into February, it was clear Nguyen needed a bit more than rest. In an effort to reach full health before the MLS season began, Nguyen received a Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) injection and began a short rehab stint.
“I’ve been playing with a little pain since [November],” Nguyen revealed. “I had a little PRP shot and some rest and that seemed to do the trick. Hopefully we can manage it and it’ll be fine.”
Nguyen joined his Revolution teammates for the final portion of their stay in Tucson, Arizona, although he didn’t appear in any matches at the Desert Diamond Cup and only recently returned to full training.
That puts Nguyen’s recovery slightly ahead of Jermaine Jones, who has remained in Los Angeles while recovering from sports hernia surgery. Although Jones will miss out on this weekend’s season opener, there’s hope in Revs camp that the veteran midfielder will be back to full strength very soon.
“He’s doing some extensive rehab,” said Heaps. “Because it was an injury with the national team, he’s with the national team doctors and they’re overseeing the rehab until we get the go ahead.”
