U.S. Soccer Claims No Contact With Milan Over Onyewu

U.S. Soccer says that there has been no contact between them and A.C. Milan concerning the wages of injured defender Oguchi Onyewu.

The big centerback tore a tendon in his knee and will be sidelined for an extended period of time, prompting Milan vice president Adriano Galliani to say that the Italian club would be looking for money to compensate for the loss.

But U.S. Soccer spokesperson Neil Buethe told Goal.com that no contact has been made between the U.S. federation and the club.

"There's been no contact between U.S. Soccer and AC Milan about Onyewu's salary, other than the news reports we've seen recently," he said. "Our priority is getting Gooch healthy.

"It's been a tough couple of days for the team,a lot of highs and lows. We'll respond to Milan appropriately when and if they contact us. But we have no comment now, as they haven't contacted us yet."

The U.S. managed to pull out a draw in the dying minutes of Wednesday's match with Costa Rica, but the final game of the Hex had a high cost. Star striker Charlie Davies was in a serious car accident and Onyewu was injured chasing down a corner in the late going.

FIFA rules seem to absolve the U.S. and stipulate that when a player is called up for international duty "the club with which the player concerned is registered shall be responsible for his insurance cover against illness and accident during the entire period of his release. This cover must also extend to any injuries sustained by the player during the international match(es) for which he was released."

Goal.com

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