Toronto FC's defensive struggles have been well documented this season.
Coming off a 2011 Major League Soccer campaign that saw them concede a league-high 59 goals, the Reds' defence has already been breached seven times through the first three games (all of them losses) of the current season.
Maybe the Canadian club's problems on the back end shouldn't come as too much of a surprise, considering Adrian Cann and Dicoy Williams, the team's starting central defensive pairing from last year, are still recovering from off-season knee surgeries and have yet to play in 2012.
And when midfielder Torsten Frings, who often dropped back as a fifth defender, suffered a hamstring injury in the first match of the regular season, TFC's problems in defence hit crisis level.
But help could soon be on the way.
Cann played 45 minutes in the team's reserve game on Saturday, marking his first action since suffering a knee injury last May. Named team MVP in 2010, the 31-year-old defender from Thornhill, Ont., has made great strides in his recovery in recent weeks, and feels he is very close to a full-time return to the squad.
"Right now it's all up to the coaching staff as to whether they want to use me. I'm here and if anything happens, I'm comfortable enough to step onto the field," Cann told reporters Monday after the team's practice.
Cann will travel with his teammates to Mexico for Wednesday's return match in the CONACAF Champions League against Santos Laguna. The Canadian was an unused substitute in last week's first leg in Toronto, but with Logan Emory unavailable and Miguel Aceval coming off a minor hamstring injury, Cann might be called upon by coach Aron Winter in Torreon.
"Saturday he (earned) his first minutes in the reserve game; everything went well with him and he is fit. He could play (against Santos)," Winter confirmed.
Cann admitted he was a bit surprised the reserve game against the Columbus Crew wasn't a more physical affair. Still, it just felt good to be out there playing again after such a lengthy layoff, although he admits there is still some work to do.
"Participating in the reserve game, it felt good. I got 45 minutes in, so moving forward I'm just going to increase the time on the (training) pitch and keep working on it. Keep building and keep getting stronger and quicker," Cann said.
The prognosis on Williams is that he will return sometime in May, which is about the same time the club hopes that right fullback Jeremy Hall be available to play.
A 23-year-old native of Tampa Bay, Hall split last season with the Portland Timbers and FC Dallas before being dealt to Toronto last November in an off-season trade.
Hall has yet to play for TFC, having entered pre-season training camp with a lingering abdominal problem. He had a sports hernia operation last month and has been training on his own ever since.
"Right now I'm just trying to work on my fitness and get that back up. That's the most important thing," Hall said. "Running wise, I don't have any pain like I did before my surgery. I've just been in the gym trying to get stronger and right now I feel the best I've felt since I was in college. I hope to get out there soon."
The most difficult part for Hall has been that he has had to watch from the sidelines, unable to help his new team through this defensive rough patch.
"Anytime you are injured it sucks being on the sidelines and watching," Hall admitted. "For me personally, this has been the first time I've been hurt and been out for a long period of time, so that's frustrating.
"But it's been motivating me to work hard ... and get back stronger so when I do return I can do well."
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