Alex Bono to miss 2-3 weeks following surgery on dislocated finger

TORONTO, Canada—Somewhat overshadowed by the match on Sunday, Toronto FC announced just prior to kickoff that goalkeeper Alex Bono would miss the next two to three weeks following dislocation on the little finger on his right hand.

The 26-year-old backup underwent successful surgery on Saturday after suffering the injury on a windy afternoon at practice earlier in the day by virtue an Alejandro Pozuelo first-time shot from ‘not too terribly far away’ which caught the top of Bono’s right hand.

It was apparently a very gruesome injury, but according to Toronto FC head coach Greg Vanney, it could’ve been a lot worse.

“I don’t know any professional goalkeepers whose pinky fingers are actually straight,” joked Vanney after Sunday’s match. “... Fortunately, it was a dislocation that was a compound dislocation, so that’s why the surgery because it went through the skin and they had to reposition it, but the good news it wasn’t a fracture—there weren’t any broken bones—which vastly reduces the recovery time. Of what was a the bad scenario, we got the best news possible. So, he’ll stay with the group and keep training and hopefully we get him back into the mix quickly.”

Bono was in fine form prior to this week’s setback. In addition to posting three clean sheets in three appearances, the 26 year old had said that he felt he was training the best he ever had. And his standout play wasn’t going unnoticed either. In addition to making the MLS Team of the Week on two occasions, the 2017 MLS Cup winner also earned high praise from his coach recently who hinted at Bono being in line for a few more starts before the end of the year.

But if Bono is out for three weeks, he’ll miss all but one of The Reds’ remaining regular season games. If he doesn’t appear in that match, barring a Quentin Westberg injury, this may mean the last time that we see Bono in 2020. However, for what it’s worth, the Baldwinsville, New York native was in his usual-high spirits over the long weekend.

In Bono’s absence on Sunday, 22 year old Kevin Silva was named to the Toronto FC bench for the first time. The rookie was promoted to the first team earlier this year after a standout season with Toronto FC II in 2019. Don’t expect to see his name called other than on an emergency basis. While he has the tools to one day be the future in goal, Silva has yet to appear in an MLS match.