Diego Luna might never get used to playing with a mask, but he's going to try as RSL opener approaches
The hardest part was the next two weeks, after the viral moment when Diego Luna broke his nose with an elbow to the face before assisting on a goal during the United States’ 3-0 win over Costa Rica during a January camp friendly.
After the win, the spotlight, and the way he impressed U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino — and every U.S. Soccer fan — with his hustle, grit and dogged determination, Luna felt the pain.
It wasn’t just the actual pain of a broken nose; the RSL midfielder was pained that his recovery would require him to take more than two weeks off, with no games, no training, or even a bike to ride or treadmill to climb to stay in shape.
He trusted the medical staff, which told him it had something to do with extra blood flow that might cause extreme bleeding in his nose. But it was tough, Luna said before training Tuesday with Real Monarchs in Herriman, Utah.
“I worked really hard to get fit for January camp, and having to leave camp and not do anything for two weeks slowed it down a bit,” he said. “It kind of sucked to be honest.”
Another hard part? The black mask he’ll now wear for the next three months of his recovery, an effort that should also prevent a subsequent fracture or dislocation near his nasal cavity. The way Luna plays in the midfield — with his head on a swivel, constantly looking up, left or right to connect with teammates like Diogo Gonçalves, Lachlan Brook and Emeka Eneli, among others, makes the changes in his vision a struggle.
“I’ve trained in it and done individual sessions. But never full training,” he said. “This week is going to be big for me.”
Still, it’s a small price to pay for Luna, who has been cleared to join up with his Real Salt Lake teammates in San Jose — California, that is — for the club’s 2025 MLS debut Saturday following Wednesday’s CONCACAF Champions Cup opener against CS Herediano in San José, Costa Rica (4:30 p.m. MT, Tubi/ViX+).
The 21-year-old reigning MLS Young Player of the Year grew up in nearby Sunnyvale, California, and was a member of the San Jose Earthquakes’ academy for three years before joining the Barca Residency Academy in 2018 and signing his first professional contract with El Paso Locomotive in USL Championship in 2021.
A little over a year later, he signed with Real Salt Lake in what was (at the time) a USL-to-MLS record transfer fee of $250,000. He’s been back home, playing in front of friends and family in the Bay Area before — but never so early in the season, he admitted.
“I think it’s going to be really nice to be back home and see family, and to be able to play in front of many people that recognize me because that’s the area I grew up in,” Luna said. “It’s very cool to start the season this way; we usually have to wait until the very end to go to San Jose. But being the first game this year, it’s going to be very cool to see family and hopefully start off the year very strong.”
Listen to Luna’s full preseason conversation with the media below, or on the Salt City FC podcast feed anywhere you get podcasts:
A few other highlights:
On the team since preseason
“I missed quite a bit of preseason, and haven’t been in training. But from the outside perspective, I’ve seen the team really connect and the guys really understand each other, the system, how we’re going to play and our main objective. I’m excited to see the guys play tomorrow and then join them and see what we can do.”
On balancing RSL with his desires to play in Europe
”That conversation will come when it happens, right? I think there’s not much to really say about it; when those things happen and that time comes, we’ll handle it day-by-day.”
On ‘warrior mentality’ during nasal injury
“For me, it was definitely different to be on the other side of the table, where I’m not playing. That game right there defined me as a player; I’m going to push through whatever I can to be on the field, whatever injury I’m facing — if I’m able to play and still perform, that’s the mentality I have. I want to be out there on the field.
“For that to be recognized in a public, very viral way seemed pretty cool. That’s just my persona, and what my mind told me to do. Now being able to not play focuses on the leadership part of how I am going to help the team and be there for the team while I’m not on the field.”
On playing Wednesday-Saturday for several weeks in return to CONCACAF competition
“We train to play. The less trainings we have and more games, the better for everyone, I think. We know it’s going to be physically tiring, but that’s where the strength staff and the medical staff comes in.
“I wish we could play Wednesday-Saturday all year round, to be honest.”