UPPER MONTCLAIR, N.J. – New York Red Bulls midfielder Joel Lindpere did not work out with the team on Monday after a lingering knee injury caused him pain for the second straight game last week.
Lindpere – who scored the third goal of New York’s 4-0 romp over D.C. United last Thursday – had his knee drained two weeks ago in a procedure that didn’t go as planned, causing pain for the past two games.
In fact, the usually durable Lindpere limped off the field and went straight for the locker room in the final minutes of the team’s 3-0 win over San Jose on April 16.
Despite the injury, however, Lindpere logged a full 90 minutes in the Red Bulls’ win over DC, and is expected to return to the mix before the Red Bulls host Sporting Kansas City on Saturday night.
“It’s nothing serious,” Red Bulls assistant coach Jan Halvor Halvorsen said. “He will be back for us training on Thursday.”
Solli loses record-tying assist
It appeared that New York defender Jan Gunnar Solli had made his mark in the MLS history books last week, tying a 12-year-old MLS record for defenders with three assists in one regular-season game.
But Solli found out Monday morning that his second assist – which led to Thierry Henry’s 38th-minute goal – wasn’t actually an assist, denying him the chance to equal Craig Vanney’s record.
[inline_node:331768]WATCH: Solli’s assist in question
MLS league officials looked back at the play in question and determined that Solli’s initial pass was actually intended for forward Luke Rodgers, and that it only reached Henry’s foot after it deflected off of United defender Perry Kitchen.
Solli’s two assists came on Henry’s 12th-minute header to the back post and Juan Agudelo’s clever finish during stoppage time.
Returning players
Monday afternoon saw a full training session from right full back Chris Albright, his most extensive work with the team to date. Recovering from knee surgery, Albright has been training with the Red Bulls for the better part of two weeks, but Monday he was fully active and engaged.
Carlos Mendes, who suffered a hamstring injury before the San Jose game, was also training with the club.
Henry, who battled an Achilles injury several weeks ago before a loss in Philadelphia, was at full strength on Monday and very sharp in training.
Kristian R. Dyer can be followed at twitter.com/KristianRDyer
