Former SJU standout Connor Lade to rejoin NY Red Bulls

Connor Lade's loan has recalled; for now, at least.

The former St. John's men's soccer standout (as reported by Big Apple Soccer) has returned the New York Red Bulls roster ahead of the team's CONCACAF Champions League match at the Montreal Impact on Wednesday night and will, most likely, remain with the squad for next Wednesday's match on Sept. 24 with C.D. FAS in El Salvador.

Lad had been on loan with the New York Cosmos, working to get back to full strength after a handful of injuries had limited his time with the Red Bulls.

"It's my understanding that the reason why he's been called back is due to a few injuries and a few situations that they're very thin with their roster," Cosmos head coach Giovanni Savarese said in his weekly conference call Tuesday. "Therefore they have called him back for the next two matches in the Champions League."

The call-up came after a depleted Red Bulls roster and Lade is expected to see time off the bench in both of the team's upcoming games.

But that's, most likely, all he will see.

According to Savarese, after these two games with the Red Bulls, Lade is expected to remain with the Cosmos in the North American Soccer League for the rest of the season, hopefully avoiding a bit of a back-and-forth trade between the two clubs for the former Red Storm player.

Strictly speaking though, the decision is out of the Cosmos' collective hands.

Lade is a Red Bulls player and the loan is dictated by the club, so any movement is at the discretion of the team.

However, Savarese remained positive that Lade would wrap up his season with the Cosmos, where he has excelled on the field despite a less-than-ideal beginning after the loan went through in late July.

After a shoulder injury sidelined him early in the loan, Lade has become a strong player on both sides of the Cosmos ball and seen valuable field time in four appearances and 263 minutes played.