Erik Lamela posts Instagram video about his recovery from hip surgery

Erik Lamela had a rough 18 months, but he’s on his way back to his best now. Yesterday was the one year anniversary of his second hip surgery, the culmination of injuries that kept him out of the Tottenham Hotspur lineup for 14 months.

He made his first appearance on the pitch at the end of the November 28 away loss to Leicester and has steadily worked to improve since. He ended up with four goals and seven assists in nearly 1400 minutes in all competitions this season, which isn’t too shabby, all things considered.

But it’s easy to forget sometimes just how far he has come. Lamela posted a video on his Instagram account that has clips from his recovery, and it’s both sobering and inspirational.

That’s Lamela going from barely able to walk, to working on his mobility in solo training, to still images from his return to Spurs’ squad. It kind of hammers home just how much he’s gone through this past season.

I don’t think anyone would say that Lamela has gotten back to the high point of his Spurs career — the 2016-17 season where he was playing outstanding football before his injury. But he’s getting there. Lamela was not named to Argentina’s World Cup squad so he’ll get a nice break this summer, will no doubt be heading to USA for their preseason tour, and will get a full preseason to get back up to speed. I sincerely hope that Lamela’s best days are still ahead of him.