LA Galaxy’s Chicharito out three weeks, says Schelotto

It was a shock when Chicharito was reported to have suffered a calf injury in training this week just before the LA Galaxy’s big El Trafico clash against LAFC Saturday, which he sat out, but he won’t miss just one game with the ailment.

Head coach Guillermo Barros Schelotto said Chicharito will be out three weeks due to the injury.

“He will not be ready for the next game. He broke the muscle, so he will be out around three weeks. And he won’t play for us next game,” Schelotto told reporters after the game.

And LA certainly could have used him, as they lost 6-2 to LAFC, after holding a 2-1 lead just before halftime. While some fans are impatient in waiting for the Mexican star to really get going for his new club, Chicharito was coming off his debut goal for the club, in Monday’s 2-1 loss to the Portland Timbers.

Galaxy midfielder Sebastian Lletget admitted the scratch of Chicharito hurt the team on the day.

“It’s very tough when you lose a big player for your team,” Lletget said. “He plays a key role in this team, especially going into this game we were all looking forward to having him involved. Stuff happens in soccer all the time and we have to change things on short notice. And for me, honestly, I prefer playing in the middle anyways and it was kind of playing like a second striker with [Cristian] Pavon up there. I found some joy at times, I thought it was good, obviously we would have liked having more of the ball and find more pockets and space behind their defensive midfielders. But again, it was a different game plan, short notice so kind of had to think on your feet a little bit but we came up short.”

The Galaxy aren’t yet eliminated from the MLS is Back Tournament, although they have a must-win game coming up Thursday against the Houston Dynamo if they have any hope of advancing to the knockout stage. Unless they make the final on Aug. 11, it appears Chicharito’s MLS is Back Tournament is over, barring a faster-than-expected recovery.

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