SAN JOSE, Calif. â This time, Sebastian Lletget was the last member of the US national team to reach the bus outside the locker room at Avaya Stadium, rather than the first.
And instead of carrying a mind full of injury-related worry, he cradled the game ball.
It was a Saturday afternoon that brought the LA Galaxy midfielder to tears: Making his first Avaya appearance since suffering a possibly career-ending foot injury at the stadium in March 2017, Lletget scored his second career USMNT goal and an assisted on another as the Americans secured a 2-0 victory over Costa Rica.
âItâs just a sense of relief,â said Lletget, who missed nearly a full year after Honduran defender Ever Alvaradoâs shattering tackle left him with a Lisfranc injury â something more commonly seen in automobile or industrial accidents â in his left foot. âGetting back to where Iâm at now, itâs definitely overwhelming, very emotional.â
Adding to the emotions was the fact that it all played out in front of his family, just as the original injury did nearly two years ago. Lletget was a youth star in the Bay Area and attended El Camino High in South San Francisco before leaving for Europe, having been discovered by scouts for West Ham United.
âPeople donât realize what it is for an athlete, when you get injured like that,â Lletget said. âI got the goosebumps even training here [Friday] morning with the team. ⊠Moving forward, I want to be part of this team, and I know what I can do on the field, it just took me so long to really get there and be fit. Iâm glad I feel at 100 percent, finally.â
Teammates knew the symbolism of Lletget getting on the end of Jonathan Lewisâ 80th-minute cross.
âNot only to just get on the field, but to work his way back after that horrific injury,â US midfielder Wil Trapp said. âHeâs a quality player and you couldnât be happier for a guy to step on the field and score in this game.â
The storyline regarding Avaya masked some other aspects of Lletgetâs return to the USMNT fold. He was a substitute in both victories, a fact due in part perhaps to the demanding learning curve of new coach Gregg Berhalterâs tactical revamp.
âHeâll be the first to say he struggled with the structure a little bit, in the beginning,â Berhalter said. âAll the credit goes to Sebastian and how, when he plays within the structure, now his skill set can take over and help him to be very effective.â
Lletget disagreed with the use of âstruggle,â but did allow it was a heavy load of granular information for players to absorb.
âOur job is to learn, and heâs teaching a style of play that â itâs not going to come easy to a lot of guys,â Lletget said. âMany of us have never been coached like this, to so much detail. But we appreciate it, especially me. I learned a lot, and thatâs one thing I told him after the game, is that I learned so much in this camp, and Iâll continue to learn and study the way he wants to play this game. Iâm definitely up for it.â
Lletget may not have gotten a start against either Panama or Costa Rica, but he came off the pitch healthy in both instances and carried the game ball from the latter match against his hip through the mixed zone.
âGregg gave it to me,â Lletget said. âHe knows everything that this moment means to me and the team, and I appreciate the gesture. ⊠I couldnât have written it any better, but this is only the start for me.â