Obafemi Martins having surgery to repair broken nose

Obafemi Martins played more than 145 minutes this week (and notched an assist) after suffering a broken nose in a collision with Clint Irwin, raising the hope that he'd be able to play through the injury as it heals. But the striker had surgery today to address the issue, and it seems almost certain Martins will miss at least Saturday's game at Sporting Kansas City.

Martins definitely came away the worse for wear in this collision:

The timing isn't ideal, as several other Sounders are out or questionable heading into the weekend. Brad Evans is with the US National Team, Osvaldo Alonso is suspended, Gonzalo Pineda is still returning from a minor injury, and Clint Dempsey could be pulled away from the team at any time for the birth of his fourth child.

Broken noses generally need to be realigned within 14 days of the damage, otherwise doctors may need to wait for the bones to fully heal before re-breaking and resetting them. Presumably Oba and the Sounders opted for the first choice, but there's no official word on that nor on a possible timeline for Oba's return.

Though missing Martins for any length of time is never ideal, there is a lot of season left, and getting him back to 100 percent as soon as possible will be important as the schedule gets packed in the coming months. Chad Barrett has played in previous matches Martins has missed.