Gabriel: Cruz Might Return Before End of Regular Season

Danny Cruz has a left toe stress fracture, a "slight Achillies injury" and a sprained right toe that he picked up against the Chicago Fire. According to Kerith Gabriel, of philadelphiaunion.com, Cruz may return before the end of the 2012 Major League regular season.

"We are hearing that its possible midfielder Danny Cruz will be available for the season finale if not sooner. Despite outside reports that Cruz has been shut down for the season..., the Union training staff told philadelphiaunion.com that the two-week respite for international action will be the waiting period before it's decided whether or not Cruz is finished for the year."

Gabriel went on to quote Paul Rushing, the Union's head trainer, in the Daily Doop!, as saying that the international break will help the training staff to properly evaluate Cruz's chances of coming back before next year.

"Actually, believe it or not he's had more issues with the left toe than he has with the right," said Union trainer Paul Rushing. "It's not something though that he can't come back from and we aren't ruling him out for this season at all. What we are going to do though is use this break to evaluate him and see where we are after before we make a final decision."

Without Cruz on the field, head coach John Hackworth employed a tighter offensive midfield against the New England Revolution, as Gabriel Farfan and Raymon Gaddis deployed as wing backs to make up for the lack of width.