Whether or not Juan Pablo Angel plays next year for the Red Bulls, he plans on playing somewhere. The 34-year-old Colombian is not only the most lethally-efficient striker in MLS history, but he’s quick to tell anyone who’ll listen that he’s finally healthy and pain free, rid of Giants Stadium’s accursed artificial turf.
“To be honest with you, I’ve heard about problems in my back. I haven’t had problems with my back since a long time ago,” Angel said. “My back had been absolutely fine, and I had it when I was using the turf. My problems here were more about the turf.”
He’s scored 13 goals this season, just one behind Galaxy forward Edson Buddle for the league lead. He’s logged career-highs in games (26) and minutes (2,233), while matching his career-best in starts (25). With four games left, he has a chance to play every game for the first time in his four-year MLS career.
“If you ask me, I want to be playing out there all the time. That’s the way I am. I’ve played through injuries and if you look at the record I have here, I hardly miss a game here,” Angel said. “If you ask me, I wouldn’t like to rest a game, especially now with the momentum. I’d like to play every game. And if I’m physically able to I will.”
Angel had suffered from a condition called Spondylosis, a degenerative osteoarthritis of the joints between the centra of the spinal vertebrae and/or neural foraminae. But he says that since he got off the Giants Stadium turf _ which was renowned for being unforgiving _ his back has improved greatly.
The striker missed four games in June 2008, with a bulging disc that also caused him pain in his left hamstring. According to Red Bull trainer Rick Guter, he “hasn’t been symptomatic this year. We’re concentrated on strengthening his core which has helped alleviate any issues. It was the bulging disc that was symptomatic, not the spondy.”
Angel _ who’ll turn 35 by the end of the season _ is married with two sons that like the area, but it’s still unclear whether the team plans to re-sign him. What is clear is that he wants to and plans to play for another year or two.
