A week ago Tuesday, Embolo was unable to travel to the U.S. with his teammates. The reason: His Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) was invalid, even though its status had been green for a long time.

“It’s obviously not a pleasant situation to be in. My job is to look for solutions anyway and try to get Breel over there as quickly as possible,” says SFV President Peter Knäbel.

The national team striker had to apply for a visa at the U.S. Embassy in Bern. “He had to go to the embassy all by himself,” says Knäbel, adding that the Rennes pro therefore had to fill out the application without help from SFV staff. “I found him to be very relaxed during this time, which certainly helps,” the German concludes.

Shouldn’t the SFV have been monitoring Embolo’s status more closely?

“We were able to complete this visa process in a very short time,” explains the 59-year-old. On Thursday evening, Embolo receives the final “go”—his visa is issued. On Friday, he finally joins the team in San Diego.

“He’s here eight days before the first game. When you see him training, you know—it’s all about the sport now,” Knäbel notes. So he doesn’t believe the incident has left any lasting impact.

Andy Böni, editor-in-chief of blue Sport, wants to know whether Embolo’s status should have been clarified more proactively given his record—the 29-year-old was recently convicted of making a threat. “The entire process was monitored; you can see his status. When his status suddenly changed at the airport, it was a matter of making the best of the situation.”

The full interview in the video