Minnesota United re-entered MLS play Saturday with a match against FC Cincinnati, the start of a busy seven-game, 22-day stretch.
That's a match nearly every three days in a schedule that mixes in MLS games, a July 10 U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal and an international friendly against Aston Villa.
"It's going to be a very intensive schedule," goalkeeper Vito Mannone said. "We got bodies back, we regroup and we carry on training hard towards these next two months where we really need to push on to make the playoffs."
That's a far cry from the three-week hiatus United had from league play. During that stretch, the shorthanded Loons played two U.S. Open Cup games and a friendly. The workload wasn't much, but between injuries and international call-ups, United fielded a mishmash of starters and bench players.
Which is also why Minnesota defender Michael Boxall isn't too worried about the upcoming grind.
"I think we've shown through the international breaks that we've got a bit of depth," Boxall said. "Whoever goes out, needs a break or whatever, players have stepped up and done their jobs."
The Loons also return a bulk of their players from international leave. Jan Gregus, Rasmus Schuller and Kevin Molino are all back. The only missing piece is All-Star defender Romain Metanire, who is still with the Madagascar international team.
With multiple matches ahead, Loons coach Adrian Heath said he has scaled back practices.
