D.C. United midfielder Ben Olsen is struggling to recover from offseason surgery and is increasingly likely to miss United’s first official match of the season.
“Not good” was the way Olsen described his progress after December surgery to remove bone spurs in both of his ankles. He’s likely to undergo additional minor surgery this week to help speed his rehabilitation.
The 30-year-old scored a career-high seven goals last year but is yet to touch a ball this preseason. United’s first official match is Mar. 12 against Harbour View in Kingston, Jamaica, in the CONCACAF Champions’ Cup.
“This surgery can take the better part of three months to heal, that’s the best-case scenario,” said United general manager Dave Kasper. “We’re monitoring his progress on a weekly basis, and we’ll see how he responds the next couple weeks to some therapy.”
United was scheduled to return to Washington Tuesday night after concluding a two-week training camp in Bradenton, Fla., with a 1-1 exhibition tie against Kansas City. The team departs for the next leg of training camp in California this weekend.
