Jeff Cassar admitted he was a bit nervous when he saw Kyle Beckerman on the ground clutching his left leg during the U.S. National Team’s 2-0 win over Mexico on Wednesday. He texted the Real Salt Lake captain after the match and after a brief exchange and assurance from Beckerman that he’d be fine, Cassar was able to exhale.
“You’re a beast!” Cassar said he texted Beckerman after receiving the good news.
Beckerman appeared to suffer a non-contact injury during the match, but in the 30 minutes after he was subbed off, it became clearer that he was in better condition than originally thought.
“I think he’s going to be fine,” Cassar smiled after training on Thursday. “Now it’s making the best choice for him and the team, but it’s going to be hard to keep him off the field, that’s for sure.”
Beckerman and Nick Rimando did a regen session at the stadium while the rest of the team practiced at the club’s training ground on Thursday. If Beckerman is unable to play, Cassar has other options in the midfield, including Pecka, John Stertzer and Luke Mulholland.
“We’ll have to see how it all shakes out,” Cassar said. “John’s playing at a great level right now. Pecka is back from his injury and looks sharp. He got some minutes with the Monarchs. So that’s good.”
RSL faces Vancouver Whitecaps FC on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. MT at Rio Tinto Stadium with television coverage on KMYU.
