UCLA men’s soccer has been decimated by injuries throughout this season, forcing the team to adapt and learn on the fly.
Players have had to change positions, formations have been altered and new roles established. But heading into their first game of the 2014 NCAA Tournament on Sunday against the San Diego Toreros, the Bruins’ standard remains the same as it has been all year: play with 100 percent effort and strive for nothing less than the College Cup.
“(This) season, we’ve learned a lot. We’ve made mistakes, corrected mistakes,” said freshman forward Abu Danladi.
This year, the No. 2 seed Bruins (11-4-4) will have to make their College Cup run without one of their most dynamic and productive scorers – freshman forward Seyi Adekoya, who broke his leg against Cal on Nov. 2 – and one of their best defenders – sophomore Nathan Smith, who suffered the same injury against Washington on Oct. 23.
But a key piece that’s coming back into play for the Bruins is Danladi, who has also been limited by injuries this year, but is finally starting to fully recover from a hamstring injury he suffered against Oregon State on Oct. 19.
“Losing (Adekoya) to a broken leg and losing (Smith) to a broken leg … you can be uneasy, disappointed,” said coach Jorge Salcedo. “But bringing (Danladi) back will bring us some of the pace and the athleticism that (Adekoya) had, you know (Danladi) has (that athleticism) as well.”
Danladi has shown flashes of stardom when he’s been healthy this year. In just seven games played, the freshman phenomenon has scored four goals, which is the fourth-highest mark on the team. Last Sunday, after missing nearly a month due to the hamstring injury, Danladi shined against San Diego State, scoring a goal in just 26 minutes of playing time in the Bruins’ 2-1 win.
“He’s working to get back to 100 percent,” said sophomore midfielder Willie Raygoza. “He’s looking good. He’s gonna be a big part of our team and he’s gonna win close games for us.”
As of Wednesday, Danladi said he was at “95 percent” of his full health and fitness potential. And having even a somewhat-healthy Danladi could be the difference for the Bruins in their NCAA second-round matchup on Sunday against the Toreros (10-5-4), who stifled the UCLA offense earlier this year in a 1-0 victory.
“I feel like it’s more like a revenge game,” Danladi said about the rematch with USD. “Rather than like trying to win, it’s more like we don’t want to lose twice in a row.”