Eleven defender Nemanja Vukovic out indefinitely
Nemanja Vukovic hurdles a New York Cosmos opponent in 2016. Matt Schlotzhauer/Indy Eleven
The Indy Eleven have already dealt with an absurd number of injuries to key players this season. Unfortunately for Indy, the brutal rash of knocks just got even worse.
Left back Nemanja Vukovic is out indefinitely with a kidney contusion, a team official confirmed Thursday. Yes, “Iron Man” is hurt. Vukovic was the club’s most durable player in 2016; he led the team in minutes.
No concrete timetable has been established for his return to the pitch, but early indications are that it’s a multi-week injury. He’s already been ruled out for Saturday’s road match against first-place Jacksonville Armada FC.
Vukovic joins regular starting wingers Don Smart (quad) and Ben Speas (sports hernia) on the shelf. It’s been a theme for Indy this season.
Matt Schlotzhauer/Indy Eleven
Captain and rock-solid center back Colin Falvey also missed time to start the season recovering from sports hernia surgery. He’s back now, as is goalkeeper Jon Busch, who recently sat with a pinched nerve in his neck. Rookie attacker Tanner Thompson, who started a few matches and impressed before getting injured, is back as well.
To borrow an eye-rolling cliché from Indianapolis Colts coach Chuck Pagano, it’s definitely next man up for Indy.
The Eleven made a conscious decision this season to stock the roster with fewer bodies and take a conservative approach to the player budget — a decision that’s unfortunately come back to haunt them. No club could anticipate this many injuries early in a season, so Eleven coach Tim Hankinson deserves plenty of credit for managing his side to zero losses through four matches.
The short-handed Eleven (0W-4D-0L, 4 points) will take their talents to “North Beach” on Saturday in an attempt to upset also-unblemished Jacksonville Armada FC (2W-2D-0L, 8 points).
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