Borussia Dortmund manager Edin Terzic has told Gio Reyna that he’ll have to be patient as he goes through a spell with limited playing time.
Reyna has started just one game for Dortmund in 2023 and hasn’t got off the bench at all in back-to-back Bundesliga matches.
The U.S. national team attacker has still managed to make a major impact for Dortmund in his limited minutes, scoring goals in three straight appearances off the bench in late January and early February.
But with Dortmund on a run of nine straight wins in all competitions, Terzic has been reluctant to change things up and give Reyna more playing time. The likes of Karim Adeyemi, Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, Julian Brandt, Donyell Malen and Marco Reus have all been preferred to the American attacker in recent matches.
That doesn’t seem likely to change any time soon, as Terzic said in his press conference ahead of Friday’s game against RB Leipzig. It sounds like Reyna’s recent history of injuries is also playing a role.
“Gio has always suffered [injury] setbacks, he was injured once with the national team,” Terzic said. “He has made a few short appearances, played from the start against Bremen, and had no playing time in the last three games. He knows what we expect from him. But we also know what he can give us. He has to be diligent and patient.”
Dortmund is currently second in the Bundesliga table, trailing Bayern Munich only on goal difference. Union Berlin is three points back in third place, with RB Leipzig and Freiburg also in the mix.
Terzic said that tight race is a refreshing change of pace after several years of Bayern running away with the title.
“The table is extremely exciting, both below and above [us],” he said. “We proved that we can win against anyone. If we manage to consistently get our quality onto the pitch, a lot is possible.”
The U.S. men’s national team is over a month removed from its Round of 16 run at the World Cup, but the drama surrounding the team and program was really just beginning.
By now, you probably heard about the “blackmail” scandal involving (potentially former) USMNT head coach Gregg Berhalter and Gio Reyna. The saga stemmed from Berhalter revealing he almost sent an unnamed player home due to attitude issues in Qatar after that player was told of a limited role before the tournament. That player was Reyna, and Reyna’s parents were so upset about it that they went to U.S. Soccer officials to tell them Berhalter kicked a woman — who he would later marry — in an altercation around 30 years ago. The USSF is investigating the accusations and has yet to name a new, full-time head coach even though Berhalter remains a candidate.
Reyna has since returned to Borussia Dortmund and has been forced to deal with the distractions that his parents created. But if Reyna was ever going to reinforce the argument that Berhalter doesn’t deserve to be retained, scoring a pair of game-winning goals in a few days would certainly do the trick.
GIO REYNA SCORES A STOPPAGE TIME WINNER FOR BORUSSIA DORTMUND!!! 😤
After scoring a brilliant game winner against Augsburg on Sunday, Reyna gave Dortmund another win with a late goal in stoppage time on Wednesday.
This is a player who Berhalter decided would have a limited role before the World Cup even started. Not that Reyna’s talent was ever in doubt, but Berhalter’s decision looked even worse Wednesday with this latest goal.
Welcome to FTW Explains, a guide to catching up on and better understanding stuff going on in the world. Are you wondering about the drama involving U.S. men’s national team head coach Gregg Berhalter and the Reyna family? We’re here to help.
The USMNT’s run at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar ended with a Round of 16 loss to the Netherlands. And one of the major talking points around the USMNT concerned Berhalter’s usage — or lack thereof — of Gio Reyna. The talented 20-year-old from Borussia Dortmund did not start a single match in Qatar and only appeared in three matches on limited minutes.
The context around that decision took a major turn on Wednesday. Let’s break down what we know so far.
The USMNT officially has its World Cup controversy
You’re not playing at a World Cup without some controversy, so it’s time to offer congratulations to the U.S. men’s national team for officially making it as a soccer nation.
The USMNT’s issue is the status of Gio Reyna, who has surprisingly played just seven minutes out of a possible 180. Even with the quality Gregg Berhalter has at his disposal on the wings, Reyna was widely expected to have played a more important role in Qatar than he has.
Reyna’s lack of playing time has sparked some speculation on whether he has an injury or if something else is up. Former USMNT forward Eric Wynalda thinks he knows what’s going on, offering claims of “a rift” between player and coach on social media following the team’s 0-0 draw with England.
Wynalda alleged “a massive controversy within the team” in a Twitter Space hosted by the LA Times, adding that there is now “internal strife with the manager, Gregg Berhalter.”
“I don’t know how much I should comment on that,” said Wynalda, before immediately commenting on that. “I’ve been trying to console Gio’s father, Claudio (his former USMNT teammate), for the last couple of hours and days with everything going on.”
Wynalda went on to allege that Berhalter “did lie to the media” in saying that Reyna was injured. “He asked the player to go along with that story, which caused a rift between the two of them and now he’s on the bench, which is really unfortunate,” said Wynalda. “This situation should have been handled very differently.”
If true — and that “if” is massive given the off-the-cuff nature of these quotes — Wynalda’s claims would be fairly explosive stuff. Reyna is among the best USMNT players, and given that he’s only 20 years old, he figures to be a foundational part of the squad for many years to come. In particular, Wynalda’s allegation that Reyna’s teammates are also upset with Berhalter over the lineup choices would point to a real problem for Berhalter and U.S. Soccer.
There was some confused messaging on this topic coming out of the team’s draw with Wales. Berhalter cited sporting reasons to explain why he opted to bring Jordan Morris on for the final minutes rather than Reyna, but also said that Reyna had felt “tightness” in the days leading up to the game.
With Reyna’s unfortunate injury history, it wasn’t surprising to hear that he had suffered some kind of knock, but Reyna told reporters that he “felt ready to go” after acknowledging “a little bit of tightness over the last few days.”
Tactically, it’s not all that difficult to parse how the USMNT has ended up leaving Reyna out of the starting 11. Berhalter’s 4-3-3 formation against Wales only had two positions that Reyna truly fits into, at least as long as the game state doesn’t dictate major risk-taking in central midfield. The starters in the spots that made sense for Reyna were Christian Pulisic and Tim Weah, two of the team’s other attacking stars.
Against England, Berhalter switched to a 4-4-2, adding to the number of spots where Reyna would be at his best, but those places went to Pulisic, Weah, Weston McKennie (a player that will start in any formation), and Haji Wright. Reyna is a bigger talent than Wright, but he can’t lead the line in the same way; they’re not really in direct competition with one another.
There are angles you could take to circumvent this: a move to a 4-2-3-1 formation, or shifting Weah into a center forward role. All of those would be big decisions, though, just as Berhalter is making a huge choice when he leaves Reyna out.
Things are different once you turn to Berhalter’s substitutions. The USMNT made five moves against Wales. Reyna’s not a perfect fit in the midfield when the USMNT plays 4-3-3, or as a striker, but it was possible to adjust and make room for Reyna, and Berhalter didn’t do it. Even taking a generous read, that’s a curious choice from the manager.
(Photo by Lars Baron/Getty Images)
Fans took issue with Berhalter bringing Jordan Morris on, but the coach’s post-game analysis — that the game had become so direct that Morris’ straight-line speed and physicality were more suited to the situation — does hold some water. Still, it’s not like Reyna is slow or easily pushed around, and you can argue that Berhalter over-thought that particular choice.
Against England, there was another head-scratcher: Berhalter went 77 minutes before making any substitutions, even as the team began to show fatigue.
It’s hard to quibble with Brenden Aaronson coming on for McKennie, though that is certainly a spot that Reyna would have fit into with no issues. Reyna had to wait until the 83rd minute to take the field as a forward as Berhalter stuck with the 4-4-2 look that had flummoxed England, giving him little time to make much of an impact.
It is strange that Reyna hasn’t played more. Berhalter is facing the most bizarre World Cup ever, slammed right into the middle of the European club season, and has minutes to manage. Reyna is one of his best players, and has declared himself fit, so it stands to reason that he’d have seen more playing time.
On the other hand, it just so happens that the USMNT is deeper on the wings than they are anywhere else. Aaronson is right up there with Reyna in terms of talent, and he’s not starting either. Coaches call this a “good problem,” but it is still a problem, because you have more players who rightly feel they’ve earned time than you have starting positions to give out. Someone’s going to be unhappy when the lineup comes out.
It could also be that fans and ex-USMNT forwards are overreacting in act two of a three-act story. Berhalter has repeatedly talked about how you have to tackle the whole group stage, and Tuesday’s match against Iran — who figure to play out of a low block — stacks up as the best game of the trio for Reyna’s clever, shifty style of play. Reyna, if he ends up playing a major role against Iran, could be Berhalter’s “Chekhov’s Gun,” particularly if the USMNT gets the win they need to advance.
If not, though, the choice to bring one of the best young players the USMNT has ever had to a World Cup, not use him very much, and struggle for goals is the kind of thing that tends to take up a lot of time when your employer brings you in for a performance evaluation.
After Tim Weah gave a rampant U.S. the lead in the first half, Gareth Bale’s late penalty earned a resurgent Wales a point at Al-Rayyan Stadium.
Late in the match as the USMNT searched for a winner, Berhalter somewhat surprisingly brought on Jordan Morris, not Reyna, in place of Weah.
In his post-game press conference, Berhalter gave a somewhat contradictory rationale on why Morris was the choice and Reyna did not feature in the game.
“In the phase of the game we were at, we went with Jordan who we felt could give us speed and power,” Berhalter said on his decision.
But he also added that Reyna, who has struggled with muscle injuries over the past year but has been fit for more than a month, had experienced some discomfort during Wednesday’s training exercise against Qatari side Al-Gharafa SC.
“It was trying to get him up to speed. There was some tightness we were guarding against,” Berhalter said.
Berhalter added that he felt Reyna would be ready for Friday’s game against England.
For his part, Reyna insisted that he is at full speed, though he did acknowledge to reporters in the mixed zone that he had felt “a little bit of tightness over the last few days.”
“I feel great. I feel really good. I feel ready to go,” he said. “I felt ready to go but it was just [Berhalter’s] decision.”
Jesús Ferreira, Weston McKennie, and Gio Reyna are featured in the murals
Adidas has unveiled murals of three U.S. men’s national team stars ahead of the World Cup.
Jesús Ferreira and Weston McKennie, both products of the FC Dallas academy, have murals in Dallas, while New York City FC academy product Gio Reyna has a mural in Queens, located in his home state of New York.
McKennie’s mural is designed by graffiti artist JEKS ONE, and is located in the Bishops Art District at 938 W Davis Street. It features an American flag, an ode to his family’s military background.
Ferreira’s mural, also in Dallas at 3287 S Polk Street, is designed by Jeremy Biggers. It contains elements of the FC Dallas logo as well as the Colombian flag, representing the country where Ferreira was born.
The mural of Reyna is at 7302 Northern Blvd in Queens and is designed by Drew Merritt. The design contains lavender and ceibo floral illustrations, which are the national flowers of Portugal and Argentina, respectively, to represent his heritage.
There was no last-minute injury heartbreak for the U.S. ahead of the World Cup
There were several headlines with Americans abroad this weekend but in a sense, the only thing that really matters is the story that didn’t happen.
Namely, no players on the World Cup roster got injured in their final game before heading for Qatar.
USMNT fans watched the weekend’s slate of games with their breaths collectively held, but there was no devastating last-minute injury. In fact, there was even a key player returning from a short spell on the sidelines.
Before we go on a hiatus for the World Cup, let’s get to the Five.
Adams may be having best season of any American playing in a top-five European league. He’s already one of the most important players on a Premier League team and may be the most important USMNT player when the World Cup kicks off in two weeks.
The USMNT star was fouled, then told the referee he may want to take another look
Gio Reyna has been lauded for his sportsmanship after he turned down a penalty in Borussia Dortmund’s win over Bochum on Saturday.
Dortmund was already up 2-0 as the first half wound to a close, with Reyna having converted from the spot in the 12th minute. The American received the ball and dribbled into the box, where he was brought down by Bochum defender Danilo Soares.
Referee Tobias Stieler pointed to the spot amid strong protests from Bochum players. After the game, Stieler told SPORT1 that two of those players had a message for him from Reyna.
“Two players came to me and said that Reyna had said it wasn’t a penalty for him,” Stieler explained.
Stieler then went to Reyna himself and asked the 19-year-old his opinion of the play.
“I walked past him and asked him if he thought it was a penalty. He then had more of a doubting face. I would interpret he was saying it may not be a penalty,” continued Stieler. “But he didn’t come to me and say that was clear and obviously wrong, please correct that.”
After his brief consultation with Reyna, Stieler indicated that he would go to VAR to review the play. Bochum goalkeeper Manuel Riemann can then be seen approaching Reyna to thank him for his sportsmanship.
“He said to the referee, ‘No foul! No foul!’” Riemann told SPORT1 after the game.
Stieler would overturn the penalty after a brief review.
Bochum’s Twitter account showed its appreciation to the USMNT star after the incident, saying: “Well played, colleague Reyna!”
The overturned penalty wouldn’t have any impact on the result. Just minutes later, Youssoufa Moukoko scored his second goal of the game to make it 3-0, which would end up as the final score.
Watch Reyna turn down penalty
video of Gio Reyna turning down a penalty yesterday. Ref comes up to him to ask if it’s a penalty and he seems pretty indifferent. Ref immediately signals VAR and Bochum GK then thanks Reyna pic.twitter.com/xb4m43SOWL
