COLUMBUS -- Anyone who has returned to work after a once-in-a-lifetime vacation or had to hit the school books following a fabulous break can understand the letdown Columbus Crew midfielder Robbie Rogers went through upon his return to the Crew in mid-August.
Rogers, the 21-year-old, second-year pro, missed two Crew matches and was gone for about four weeks to play for the U.S. Olympic team in Beijing. He started all three matches in China in the USA's unsuccessful bid to advance out of pool play.
Although Rogers was back on the field for the Crew less than 48 hours upon coming home, he wasn't the same player -- at least at first.
"It took me two or three games to get adjusted. It's tough to go away from your team for about a month then get right back into it," he said.
He wasn't creating havoc on the left side with his speed or challenging defenders with his runs toward goal that helped him make him an MLS All-Star this season. Crew coach Sigi Schmid sensed something was amiss.
"It took awhile. Anytime you're involved in something like the Olympics it's emotionally draining on you as well as being physically demanding," he said. "It's like coming back from vacation. Basically for a couple of weeks you're bored with everything. That's what happens to players who go to such a big soccer event like that. It took him awhile to get back and back into the rhythm but he's on an uptick again and I'm really happy with what he's doing.'
Rogers was experiencing both mental and physical fatigue.
"Playing those games in a short amount of time and training all the time and the flights and the travel, it was tough," he said. "Also, mentally when we had such high hopes then we lost to Nigeria (in the final group match), it takes a lot out of you. You try to absorb everything then you're back here it's like, 'Darn, I was just at the Olympics and now I'm back here.' It figures to do that to anybody. I'm back. I feel good now."
Rejoining a successful team has certainly helped. The Crew are 6-0-1 since he's been back and on the verge of wrapping up the Supporters' Shield as the best team in the league.
"When you're winning you kind of forget about all the other stuff. It's a pleasure being on the field with these guys," Rogers said. "I was in a groove before I left. The first few games I was out of it but I think I'm back where I was before I left."
Rogers started the season with five goals in seven games, including two apiece against Chivas USA and San Jose. He didn't score again until the team's 25th game Sept. 18 when he unleashed a wicked strike from about 40 yards 19 seconds into the second half of a 3-1 win over New York to earn goal of the week honors.
In last Saturday's match he continued to take the restarts for the injured Guillermo Barros Schelotto and put a corner kick to the head of Chad Marshall for the lone goal in a victory at New England.
Still, Rogers' value goes beyond the scoresheet. He is dangerous anytime he has the ball past midfield and defenders are prone to doing anything to stop him, thus, his league-leading 67 fouls suffered.
"Maybe he's not scoring but he's completing his passes. Maybe it's a good cross that sets up a Marshall goal, a header off a corner. He's finding different ways to impact the game," Schmid said. "The last two games he's been fouled 12 times so he's still getting fouled an awful lot. The physical play has improved his ability to ride a tackle. At times he can't see it coming a little more, he can sense it better. He knows it's going to be there and getting upset by it is not going to help him. The best way to respond is helping the team win the game."
Forward Alejandro Moreno has been from Rogers by finding more space as the defense seeks to shut down the midfielder. He said it's wrong to criticize Rogers for not scoring more lately.
"Robbie was doing well before the Olympics," Moreno said. "Maybe he had a stretch where he wasn't finding the back of the net with consistency and maybe lost his way a little bit but he was still dangerous for us and he was still creating opportunities for himself and other people. He's done well over the course of the year."
What has separated the Rogers of late from the pre-Olympic model is noticeable to Schmid.
"Robbie is growing on the field every day. The difference between young players and experience players is the consistency of performance," he said. "What you see in a young player is those flashes of brilliance and you get excited about that. But there are certain days there's no flash at all. What happens with older players is there's still those flashes but when there's no flashes it's very, very consistent; very steady and they bring you the same performance all the time. That's how you see young players develop and Robbie's going through that evolution right."
Rogers is expected to handle set pieces against the Los Angeles Galaxy Saturday at Crew Stadium until Schelotto makes his return. The Argentinean forward said Friday he is ready to play against the Galaxy and will likely come off the bench vs. the Galaxy for his first appearance in four games.
The Crew will be without suspended defender Frankie Hejduk against the top offense in the league. Danny O'Rourke likely will move from center back to right and rookie Andy Iro will pair with Marshall in the middle.
Despite the disparities in records, the Crew know the Galaxy are in desperation mode.
"We're not looking at a scoring battle," Crew forward Pat Noonan said. "Defensively we've been playing well. We need to keep playing well and keep teams off the board. If we do that, you saw at New England, all we need is the one goal and you can walk away with a victory. Our plan is for it not to be a back-and-forth game and we're leaving holes open and they're getting chances."
Schmid will not coach the team for the second time this season. He missed the 2-2 tie at home with Kansas City to attend his daughter's wedding but this team he's off the sideline because of an red card late against the Revolution. He might find a spot among the expected overflow crowd.
"I might go have a brat or something, maybe a little beverage up in the stands; talk to the folks, maybe visit the Nordecke (supporters section)," he said. "I really don't know. It's a sold-out game so I don't know if there's any place I can sit. There might not be any seats available. We'll see."
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