Gio Reyna may have finally made a start for Nottingham Forest, but that doesn’t mean the club believes it can count on him.
That is the opinion of Alexi Lalas, who spoke about the U.S. men’s national team midfielder’s dire club situation on the latest episode of his State of the Union podcast.
Reyna finally made his first Premier League start over the weekend, notching an assist from a corner kick as Forest drew Wolves 2-2 in a vital match.
It took the American nearly three months of his loan from Borussia Dortmund to get his first start, having played a total of just 90 minutes for Forest prior to Saturday’s match.
Though Reyna has finally made a breakthrough, Forest now has just five matches remaining this season. As a disappointing loan stint gets set to conclude, Lalas didn’t mince words about the USMNT star’s situation.
“You don’t need me to tell you that Gio starting, and Gio playing after what has been an absolutely abysmal time in terms of this loan to Forest is a good thing. Yes it’s a good thing. Does it change who Gio is as a player? No. Does it change how Forest in general look at him going forward? No,” Lalas said.
“I think they have gotten plenty of looks at what Gio is. And I think they have made the determination long ago that this is not somebody for the long haul. Not somebody they want to count on.”
Forest will face Everton on Sunday in a crucial relegation six-pointer. Reyna’s side enters the match one point and one place above the drop zone, with Everton just one point and one place above Forest.
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