Midfielders Will Johnson and Jean Alexandre have returned to RSL after playing for their national teams at the Gold Cup, but Alexandre came back with a back injury that could sideline him awhile.

“So, not a perfect situation,” coach Jason Kreis said, “but still nice to have his face around.”

Johnson trained with the team today, however, after helping Canada reach the quarterfinals, where it lost to Honduras on a disputed penalty kick. But Johnson said it was still a good experience -- even though he missed a chance to meet RSL's Kyle Beckerman and the Americans in the tournament semifinal -- that can only help his development as a player.

“It was a lot of fun,” he said. “Fantastic experience. Great games. And an unfortunate penalty decision in the quarterfinal put us out. Hard one to go out on … But you need a little bit of luck, and we didn't get any.

“I feel confident coming back,” he added. “I feel in a better spot than I was when I left. It did wonders. It just let me know, sort of for myself, that I belong out there with those guys. Felt that I played some good games and I want to bring that experience and confidence here and try to provide a boost to these guys and try to get us on the right track.”