CARSON, Calif. – The LA Galaxy will play the waiting game when it comes to the injury Brian Rowe suffered in the late stages of the team’s 1-1 draw with the Colorado Rapids on Saturday.
Rowe was forced to exit the match in the 84th minute with an apparent head injury after colliding with the left knee of Nigel de Jong minutes earlier.
Following the game, Galaxy boss Bruce Arena provided a minimal update on Rowe’s status.
“He took some…staples,” Arena told reporters in his postgame press conference.
The play occurred in the 80th minute when Rowe came out to make a save on a low Colorado cross, but as the goalkeeper attempted to play the ball, the knee of the on-rushing De Jong hit the right side of the goalkeeper’s face. Backup ‘keeper Dan Kennedy replaced Rowe four minutes later as he left the field to be attended to by the Galaxy’s medical staff.
“He was brave...and made the save,” defender Daniel Steres, who scored the equalizer for the Galaxy, told LAGalaxy.com. “He took a hit for us, and we’re hoping that he’s alright. We’ll be praying for him and we’ll see in the days to come how he is doing.”
Rowe’s situation may be similar to that of Galaxy captain Robbie Keane, who has missed the last week with an orbital fracture. After the draw against the Rapids, Arena stated that Keane had been limited due to the league's concussion protocol which is designed to prevent serious head injuries.
When asked if Rowe would follow the same protocol and potentially rule him for next week’s match against New York City FC, Arena shrugged and said that he would leave the evaluation to medical professionals.
“I don’t know. I have a Bachelor’s of Science. It doesn’t qualify me for a whole lot. I don’t know what the diagnosis is of the player. So how can I answer that?” Arena said. “Even if I knew what the protocol was, I probably wouldn’t do well…but that’s the extent of my understanding of science and medicine.”
Adam Serrano is the LA Galaxy Insider. Read his blog atLAGalaxy.com/Insiderand contact him atLAGalaxyInsider@Gmail.com.
