October 16, 2009
SIDELINED FOR TWO MONTHS
Soccer America: Eye surgery for DeMerit

Even though it qualified for its sixth consecutive World Cup last Saturday, it certainly hasn't been a good week for the U.S. National Team as it has received bad new concerning the health of three players.

U.S. central defender Jay DeMerit, who plays for Watford (England), will have surgery in London Monday to have the cornea in his left eye replaced, according to Soccer America's Ridge Mahoney.

DeMerit hopes to return to action within two months. He told Soccer america that his cornea was scratched by dust or grit, which somehow got underneath his contact lens.

"They'll cut out the exact same shape of the cornea with these high-tech lasers, just drop it in a new one and stitch my eye," DeMerit told Soccer America. "With this new procedure, they hope I can be out in a month or two, which to be honest, isn't that bad. The traditional way they said I'd be out three or four months."

DeMerit, who played so well during the U.S.'s superb run during the FIFA Confederations Cup in June while team captain Carlos Bocanegra recovered from an injury, joins two teammates on the sidelines for the foreseeable future -- central defender Oguchi Onyewu, who suffered a knee injury in the U.S.'s 2-2 World Cup qualifying draw with Costa Rica Wednesday, and Charlie Davies, who received leg, elbow and facial injuries and a ruptured bladder in a car accident Tuesday.

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