Sebastian Saucedo remembers July 4, 2015 as a date that nearly became his breakthrough.
Four months into his first full professional season, he had played in five matches, but had yet to put his stamp on a game. In a knotted up match against Orlando City SC, that nearly turned on its head with one violently majestic strike of the ball.
In the 84th minute, Saucedo fielded a pass 30 yards out on the left side. He took a touch to his right to center himself while simultaneously creating some traffic in front of the Orlando goal, then a cannon blast rang through Rio Tinto Stadium as he rocketed a shot that came within a whisker of besting Orlando goalkeeper Tally Hall. But a fingertip save pushed the shot into the crossbar and “Bofo’s” moment was thwarted.
Seventeen months later, Saucedo has returned from a season-long loan to Veracruz in Mexico that saw him finally score his first professional goal and he still looks back on that moment. An inch here or there and he would have celebrated at Rio Tinto Stadium and it could have twisted his fate differently, but now he feels more prepared than ever to light up the state-of-the-art video board in the south end with highlights as he returns to Real Salt Lake.
“I’m ready to score goals,” he smiled after his year-long loan was complete. “I hit the post against Orlando. I scored my first professional goal in Mexico. I think I can score many more here. I’m really excited.”
Saucedo left Salt Lake on loan last year looking not only for the opportunity to gain some playing time, but also to get experience in a different environment playing for the Liga MX club. The four-hour training sessions and focus on in-game dynamics, as opposed to shorter sessions that focus on skill work along with tactics, opened his eyes to a different way to train and play and he saw some success on the field, helping Veracruz win the Copa MX title while scoring his first professional goal in the process.
While the storybook tale of Saucedo scoring against Orlando and carving his own path into the RSL lineup would have fit the journey of some players, others need to develop differently and his time in Mexico could prove vital in kickstarting his career.
“I think there is a lot to be learned when you go on loan. There are always the storylines that we write in our own heads about our own careers and our own paths but they take a lot of different turns. Most of them mature us and most of them teach us something,” Real Salt Lake General Manager Craig Waibel said. “For Bofo this was nothing but good. He went there. He had a great experience. He learned a ton about himself and improved as a player. Now we have an extremely motivated player show sees this as his route to bigger and better things.”
Saucedo celebrated his return to Utah – where he first developed in Park City before leaving his family at 15 to hone his craft with the Real Salt Lake Academy in Casa Grande, Arizona – with an invitation to U.S. U-20 National Team camp in Costa Rica, where he will look to earn a spot in the CONCACAF U-20 Championship roster.
There, he will join teammates Justen Glad and Danilo Acosta as well as RSL-Arizona teammate Aaron Herrera in the short December camp. It will hardly be a new experience for Saucedo though. During his time with Veracruz, he also scored three goals in seven matches with the U-20 National Team, setting the tone for his inclusion as a key piece to Tab Ramos’ squad.
“It’s always an honor to get called up to the national team. Every time I put on the jersey, I felt like I had to give a lot more. I’m really happy to be called up,” he said. “We have a special group. I’m ready to showcase myself and help the team the best way possible.”
During the camp, the U-20s will play two friendlies against the U-20 Costa Rica team at their national training center on Dec. 17 and 19. The camp will aid in preparation for the 2017 CONCACAF U-20 Championship, which takes place at the Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica in San Jose and the Estadio Ricardo Saprissa in Tibas from Feb. 17 – March 5. The CONCACAF Championship serves as a qualifying tournament for the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup in South Korea.
