Originally published January 20, 2012 at 10:39 PM | Page modified January 20, 2012 at 10:41 PM
For Sounders FC's Steve Zakuani, recovery is steady but slow
Nine months after a devastating injury, Steve Zakuani returned to full practice with the Sounders on Friday. He left with mixed emotions.
Seattle Times staff reporter
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RENTON — A good frustration.
That's how Sounders FC midfielder Steve Zakuani described the feeling of returning to full practice Friday, nine months after suffering a broken right leg and subsequent nerve damage to his foot.
The joy of being able to rejoin his teammates on the field was tempered by the reminder that he isn't yet the player he was before the injury.
"I still have the picture in my head of how I played before," Zakuani said. "So I get the ball and maybe try to do something that came so natural before, and right now I'm not able to do it."
Frustrating, but in a good way.
While the competitor in Zakuani wants to get back as soon as possible, the 23-year-old is still cognizant of the progress he's made. A broken leg would've been enough to overcome, but the compartment syndrome that followed made the recovery much more complicated.
Compartment syndrome is a serious, sometimes life-threatening condition following a severe injury, where pressure increases in the muscle to the point of restricting blood flow. Due to the resulting nerve damage, Zakuani lost sensation in his right side and is only slowly getting it back.
Perspective is easy to find in the last stretch of a lengthy recovery.
"In the big picture, I'm over the moon," said Zakuani, who also overcame a serious injury to his right leg after a moped crash when he was 15.
Coach Sigi Schmid estimated that Zakuani, who carried a slight limp, was probably at 65 or 70 percent Friday, but even that was enough to make an impact. In fact, Zakuani scored a breakaway goal to win a scrimmage at the end of practice.
After going "all out" Friday, he is expected to take training lightly on Saturday. He plans to pace himself through preseason and has remained consistent in not setting a timeline for a full comeback.
"The good thing about it is I'm young still and I have many years to go," Zakuani said. "I was talking a friend yesterday and he said, 'In three or four years' time, you'll look back on this just as an injury you overcame. Being in the moment is the tough part.' "
Schmid is also taking a deadline-free approach to Zakuani's recovery.
"We'd just like to see progress each week," the coach said.
And Friday's practice was a big step.
Joshua Mayers: 206-464-3184 or jmayers@seattletimes.com.
On Twitter @joshuamayers
