Wizards dealing with adversity well

KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- A little more than a week from the March 21 season opener against Toronto FC, the Kansas City Wizards are all systems go -- almost.

Third-year forward Adam Cristman, who was acquired from New England via trade last November, is out for the next two or possibly three months with a broken bone in his left foot.

"He has a broken fifth metatarsal," Wizards head coach Curt Onalfo said. "Obviously, it's a little disappointing losing Adam, but that's all part of it.

"Every good team has to deal with adversity. With all honesty, Adam had limited playing time in preseason because of the toe injury he was coming back from. So, that's disappointing, but we move on."

Cristman missed time late last season with the Revolution with a sprained big toe on his right foot that ultimately required surgery to repair, ending his year prematurely in September.

Cristman isn't the only Wizards newcomer missing.

The team continues to wait for Argentinean midfielder Santiago Hirsig to join the team in the United States. Hirsig was with the club in Mexico, but is waiting for a visa before coming to Kansas City.

"My understanding," Onalfo said, "is that he will be back this weekend and will be ready to train next week.

"You have to get appointments, and there is always a little bit of delay when you're doing that stuff. Considering the time that we identified him and offered a contract, it's normal -- the time it takes."

In the meantime, the Wizards continue to make preparations for the regular season. Onalfo said the team is where he expected it to be by this point, including firming up starting positions.

Whether the starting 11 is or isn't completely set as of yet (Onalfo wouldn't divulge details), the team has started preparing for Toronto FC.

"We have a certain way we want to play, regardless of who is on the field," Onalfo said. "So, certainly, we've been thinking about Toronto for some time now.

Individual pieces within the TFC squad already are on Onalfo's radar.

"First of all, they are an experienced team. They have a very good passing team," Onalfo said. "They have players like Dwayne De Rosario, who is arguably one of the best players in the league, if not the best. So we have to make sure we do a good job of dealing with him. We have to make sure we do a good job of dealing with their forwards.

"They're just, overall, a very good team and can get you in a lot of different areas, so we just need to make sure we are sound defensively and put them on their heels with the players that we have."