Chris Mavinga injury has Toronto FC medical staff hitting the books

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After Mavinga raised the tooth issue, TFC medical staff found some overseas soccer studies showing there can be a connection between tooth infections and soft-tissue injuries.

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Now that the offending tooth has been removed, the MLS team is waiting to have a scan done to see the extent of the other injuries. Mavinga, who left last Friday’s 1-0 loss to FC Dallas after 45 minutes, is not expected to figure in Saturday’s game at Columbus.

There are plenty of other TFC walking wounded. Striker Jozy Altidore (foot) and defender Drew Moor (calf) remain long-term casualties.

All-star fullback Justin Morrow, who has played in just one league game this season due to a calf injury, is back on the field and “moving in the right direction,” according to Vanney.

Morrow still needs a week to 10 days before rejoining the main training group, however.

Spanish midfielder Ager Aketxe (groin strain) is likely out for a few weeks after being hurt in a tackle. Defender Eriq Zavaleta (quad) did some straightahead running Thursday and is expected to rejoin training next week.

Fullback Ashtone Morgan (hamstring) is also close to returning to full training.

“The big thing for us now is to not lose guys that we’re getting back,” said Vanney. “And so we’re trying to make sure, without rushing guys back, that they get through a reasonable amount of training sessions, protocols, all those kind of things because we’re trying to get as whole as we can as quickly as we can without putting guys out there with immense risk.”

On the plus side, Liechtenstein wingback Nico Hasler is back in full training from a quad issue. Alex Bono returns in goal after making his U.S. international debut in a 3-0 win over Bolivia.

Toronto (3-7-1) languishes in ninth spot in the Eastern Conference. Columbus (7-3-4) stands second.

Follow @NeilMDavidson on Twitter

Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press