KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Even with Ike Opara healthy once more, Sporting Kansas City faced the prospect of international competition this summer thinning their central defensive corps. Now, with Opara out with a ruptured left Achilles tendon – potentially his second season-ending injury in as many years – Sporting can't afford to stand pat.
“We have to look at a new guy,” manager and technical director Peter Vermes told reporters after Tuesday's training session. “We have to look at another player, for sure.”
Sporting will pursue every possible avenue, Vermes said, whether that be an international transfer, a Discovery signing, an intraleague trade or a loan from Brazilian partner club Fluminense.
“All options are open,” he said. “We're just searching for someone we think will fit and make a good contribution to the team. That's really it.”
Opara was hurt late in the second half of Saturday's scoreless home draw against Real Salt Lake, when he landed awkwardly while attempting to head a corner kick. It was only his sixth match since returning from the broken right ankle that ended his 2014 season after only one month.
Sporting have not said whether they expect him to return this season, but Vermes said the club must prepare as though he won't.
“At the moment, I would say that's probably the case, but you never know what can happen,” he said. “I'm not going to try to be a fortune teller on this.”
When he went down, Opara was leading Sporting with two goals and dominating aerial play in both penalty areas, raising speculation – which he played down at the time – that he might be called into the US national team for this summer's CONCACAF Gold Cup. Fellow center back Matt Besler also hopes to be in contention for a Gold Cup spot, after starting all four of the USMNT's matches at last summer's World Cup, and Homegrown defender Erik Palmer-Brown could be gone for the Under-20 World Cup later this year.
Those depth concerns aside, Opara's manager and teammates were simply sad to see him injured again, especially in what was shaping up to be a Comeback of the Year campaign and one of the league's feel-good stories of 2015.
- Get more Kansas City news at SportingKC.com
“We're upset for him,” midfielder Benny Feilhaber told reporters on Tuesday. “We're a big family here, and I'm pretty close to Ike. It's tough to see a guy work that hard to come back, and be playing that well, and have that next injury come about.
“It's a big loss,” Feilhaber continued. “Ike had been our best player and probably the best center back in the league up until now. He's a guy that's very good on the defensive and offensive sides of the ball. So it's a big loss on both sides of the ball – and on and off the field as well, because he's a great guy in the locker room. So it's a big loss for us, but having said that, we have to have that 'next man up' mentality, and we'll see what Pete decides to do with the situation.”
Opara would have no immediate comment on the injury, the club said, but he sent out the following tweet on Monday:
“All of the get well tweets/texts/calls and the support I have received over the last 48 hours has me in tears. I am grateful for everyone that has reached out and cannot describe how thankful I am to be surrounded by wonderful people. I wish there was some way that I could personally thank each of you! I will keep my head up and push on. Fall down 7, stand up 8.”
Steve Brisendine covers Sporting Kansas City for MLSsoccer.com.
