FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – After a long road to recovery, Tomás Chancalay finally made his much-anticipated return to the field two weeks ago in Atlanta. It had been nearly a year since the attacker last stepped onto the pitch for the Revolution, when an early injury in the May 25 match against New York City FC saw him subbed off after just 10 minutes. Chancalay didn’t know it then, but an ACL tear would keep him away from the game for months.
“It’s the first injury I’ve had in my life,” said the 26-year-old, who made his pro debut at just 18 years old in 2017. “It was a difficult moment when I saw the long, long way for the comeback, but after the surgery I put my mind right and I started working for the return.”
Chancalay began easing back into action during preseason in Florida, but it wasn’t until this past month that he was clear to make a full return to training with the squad.
“I put my life into the recovery. I put my life into every training in the offseason, too, and now I'm here. I'm ready to be back. I'm so happy,” he said.
That dedication paid off in the 78th minute in Atlanta, when Chancalay finally rejoined his teammates on the field. With the Revs leading 1-0, he helped the team lock down their second win of the season – even getting a look at goal in his brief time on the pitch.
According to his teammates, Chancalay was relentless in his pursuit to return to the pitch, leaving them to question if he even took a single break.
“He probably wanted to keep going even when the physios told him to take days off,” said midfielder Matt Polster. “He’s somebody that was very motivated. As a player to be on his team, he’s just awesome to play with.”
At the end of his first match back, Chancalay could be seen tearfully hugging his teammates and soaking up the emotion of his long road to recovery.
“I’m real proud of Tomás,” said head coach Caleb Porter. “He worked really hard. He didn’t even go on holiday over Christmas, he stayed and worked with our trainer. His hunger is going to really help us.”
For Chancalay, the journey back to the field took more than surgery, rehab, and rest. The first few weeks post-surgery, he said, were filled with physical pain, but the hardest part was the toll the process took on his mental health.
“It’s hard for the body, but the more important and more difficult part is the mentality,” he said. “You look at yourself outside of soccer for nine months, and it’s my first time ever being injured. I started to play at three years old and I’ve never stopped, even in the offseason. So, I missed soccer. I missed everything. That’s the most difficult, the mentality.”
Through it all, Chancalay credits his support system for keeping his spirits high: family, friends, teammates, and his psychologist, who kept him mentally strong.
“It’s so important when you have good people close to you in that moment,” he explained. “My family, my wife, my son, my daughter, my psychologist, the team, the coach, medical staff, media staff, everybody. Everybody was with me.”
Chancalay’s daughter was a new addition to his support crew, born only four days prior to his surgery. That week, he later shared on social media, was one of the hardest – and happiest – of his life.
Even as he watched from the sidelines, Chancalay continued to make an impact on the pitch – attending almost every training session and every home game since he was injured. While he says being around the team was helpful for his own mental health, he wasn’t just there for his own success.
“I try my best to stay positive. Sometimes I feel bad, but when I am with the team or outside my home I’ve tried to put on my best face for other people. I try to stay positive for the team,” he explained. “I tried to stay close and show that even when someone is going through something difficult, they can still help in some way.”
Ahead of the match in Atlanta, Chancalay described dreaming of the moment he’d take the pitch once again.
“I picture it, and it gives me chills. I want to be out there on the field and have those emotions that I had when I was a kid,” he said before his return. “All of the happiness, knowing what one can do on the field, all of the joy, running, kicking, falling, whatever it may be. I retrace those moments because I live for the game.”
It was one of those rare moments in sports, where emotion overtakes the action – a scene that made it clear: Tomás Chancalay was exactly where he was meant to be. After months of quiet determination and hard work, his return wasn’t just to the pitch, but to himself.
Now, with his first minutes behind him and a hunger growing, the Argentine forward will look to build on the momentum of back-to-back wins. Playing 23 more minutes in this past weekend's 2-0 win over NYCFC, Chancalay was back home with New England to face off against the last team he battled before injury – closing the loop on a long journey back to Gillette Stadium, where fans once again welcomed him with open arms.
“I feel good. I feel happy,” he said. “Hopefully, I can help this team and give the team something extra, so that we can accomplish something together, because we deserve it.”
