Gio Reyna Deflects Blame For Usmnt Controversy, Aims For World Cup Return

Gio Reyna went into nan 2022 World Cup arsenic 1 of United States’ brightest young stars. Controversy complete his training effort and a family conflict pinch nan team’s then-coach overshadowed his performances.

A World Cup connected US ungraded adjacent twelvemonth is simply a guiding ray for nan 22-year-old Reyna to revive a profession dogged by injuries.

Reyna says he’d now grip nan 2022 incident otherwise “in definite ways” and his actions stemmed from frustration, but nan conflict wasn’t “completely” his responsibility aliases that of his family.

Speaking to nan Associated Press astatine his caller nine Borussia Mönchengladbach past week, nan attacking midfielder said he wants to usage this play to person US coach Mauricio Pochettino he still belongs.

“I do evidently deliberation astir [the World Cup] beautiful often arsenic it’s location wherever I request and want to be,” he said. “But I effort to attraction regular here, enactment coming here, activity present each day, and hopefully judge everything will autumn into place.”

In Qatar successful 2022, Reyna played only doubly disconnected nan bench. Then-US coach Gregg Berhalter said aft nan tourney that an unnamed player, later identified arsenic Reyna, was astir sent location for a deficiency of effort successful training.

Reyna’s parents – Claudio and Danielle Reyna, some erstwhile nationalist squad players – lobbied nan US Soccer Federation (USSF) for much playing clip for Gio and contacted nan USSF astir a three-decades-old home unit allegation involving Berhalter and nan female who later became his woman – Danielle’s erstwhile assemblage roommate.

Asked if he’d do things otherwise if he had that chance again, Reyna told nan AP: “Maybe successful definite ways, but I’m not conscionable going to benignant of beryllium present and return each nan blasted for thing that was made retired to beryllium wholly my fault, which I judge it wasn’t, and besides my family’s, too.”

Reyna added nan tensions “stemmed from” unhappiness pinch his crippled time.

“At nan extremity of nan day, I was conscionable upset that, you know, I wasn’t really playing. I was playing astatine Dortmund. I thought that I wanted to play astatine nan World Cup and yet successful nan end, I didn’t do that, and that’s really what it stemmed from,” he said.

“I conjecture nan vexation and nan disappointment was conscionable wanting to play and thief my country. It’s truthful acold removed now and truthful acold successful nan past, I don’t moreover really want to talk astir it immoderate more.”

Reyna is hoping Gladbach is his springboard backmost to nan nationalist team. Joining up location pinch his friend and US teammate Joe Scally was “the cherry connected top.”

A litany of injuries person stopped Reyna building momentum. His past 3 years astatine Dortmund saw him utilized arsenic an effect substitute, loaned to Nottingham Forest, past benched for overmuch of past season.

The past clip Reyna played 90 minutes successful a convention crippled was successful March 2022 and he’s played erstwhile for nan US since nan 2024 Copa América. Fitness issues person constricted him to playing 4 of 8 Bundesliga games astatine Gladbach truthful far.

Even coming disconnected nan chair for Gladbach, Reyna said, is “still amended than what I was doing past play astir of nan time.” With only 4 planned US friendlies earlier nan team’s pre-World Cup camp, Reyna’s main chance to impressment is pinch Gladbach.

“I deliberation Pochettino was very clear pinch saying, ‘You request to play, execute and past if you do that past you person a bully chance to travel successful again,’” he said. “It’s each connected maine now.”

Dortmund is known for processing talented youngsters but Reyna now wonders if he should person moved “a small spot earlier” for much crippled time. “I had a bully emotion erstwhile I made nan determination to enactment there. It didn’t activity out.”

Reyna has had astatine slightest 8 chopped injuries successful nan past 5 years. Most were soft insubstantial and musculus problems, pinch 1 limb fracture.

Fitness issues person besides constricted his domiciled pinch Bundesliga struggler Gladbach.

“I’ve learned a batch astir my body,” said Reyna. That intends treating fittingness activity arsenic much of a speech pinch nan club’s diversion coaches and uncovering caller ways to woody pinch nan intelligence strain of yet different setback.

“The first 24 to 48 hours are ever going to suck. There’s nary measurement information that,” he said. “What I’ve learned now is, aft those 1 aliases 2 days wherever [there’s] evidently a batch of pain, a batch of downtime, down energy, you conscionable person to get connected pinch it. You person to footwear on, you person to really conscionable onslaught nan rehab.”

Reyna says he’s taking connected much work connected and disconnected nan section arsenic he tries to fulfil his imaginable arsenic a player.

“I would emotion to look backmost successful nan early and opportunity that it was a pivotal year, fewer years here,” he said. “But talking is not really nan way. You person to move nan talking into action.”