BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. – Chicago Fire midfielder Logan Pause couldn’t sit still last week after he broke two ribs and suffered a collapsed lung in a collision with Philadelphia defender Bakary Soumare on August 12.
So the Fire captain, who was expected to be out for four to six weeks, decided to start running on his own.
“I don’t know what this guy does at home, maybe he’s got the magic potion,” coach Frank Klopas told MLSsoccer.com. “He’s doing a lot better. For sure, there’s discomfort there, but it’s great.”
The collapsed lung, known as pneumothorax, healed last week, and Pause participated in training on Tuesday for the first time since the injury. He’ll have an X-ray on Tuesday.
“I’m feeling much better than I was,” said Pause, who took part in a scrimmage as a neutral player, where he didn’t receive much contact. “Right now, I’m just taking it day by day and trying to progress things along.”
The Fire have played two games without their captain, last Wednesday’s 4-2 loss to D.C. United and a 2-1 home win over New England on August 18.
On Tuesday, the holding midfielder didn’t give a target for when he’d return. An appearance in Sunday’s game against Houston seems unlikely, but Klopas said it isn’t out of the question.
After Sunday’s game, the Fire have a 10-day break from league play before they travel to Toronto.
“As games come and go, we’ll take an assessment as that happens,” Pause said. “Of course I’m itching to get back, but the team is fine without me. I can help out in other ways. I want to just make sure that, when I’m coming back, I’m coming back and I’m not missing more games.”
