CARSON, Calif. – There is no timetable for the return of injured LA Galaxy outside backs Todd Dunivant and James Riley, but the pair is moving forward in their rehabilitation.
Both players have been sidelined since April with Riley undergoing knee surgery while Dunivant has been sidelined with an abdominal tear that later required surgery of its own. In recent days, the pair has been spotted running on the sidelines while their teammates train, but following training on Tuesday, Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena stated that both players are nearing a return to training.
“[Dunivant] is making good progress. He will probably get back on the field next week,” said Arena. “Meanwhile [Riley] will get back on the field soon. He is doing very well.”
For Dunivant, The recovery has been a difficult one as he was forced to undergo surgery after his abdominal tear did not show signs of healing. Following the surgery, which took place early last month, Dunivant was confined to five weeks of rest that prevented him from working out with the team and made sleeping, laughing, and even talking loudly a chore.
“Having to sit around do nothing, I have never experienced anything like that. If you want to talk about torture for an athlete that is it—not being able to do anything,” said Dunivant. “You can sit around talk to the guys, but you can’t ride a bike, and can’t do anything. From that side of it, it was hard. But having the world cup break kind of helped, and we haven’t had many games at almost the third of the season, so we still have plenty of soccer to be played.”
Dunivant is being eased back into action by participating in extensive fitness protocol that will allow him to build up his game strength before he ever touches a ball. A method that the left back hopes will allow him to return to action injury free.
“We will start building that up and eventually we will be doing ball work,” said Dunivant. “Obviously, at some point getting some games with [LA Galaxy II] and go from there. It’s good, that’s what we have, and another huge benefit of that team is to help the guys like me out. It’s exciting.”
