Gregg Berhalter yet to speak with Gio Reyna ahead of USMNT return

Jun 13, 2023

Gregg Berhalter is less than two weeks from being back on the sidelines as head coach of the U.S. men’s national team and although much of his focus will be on improving the current squad in September friendlies, another main issue will be resolving his relationship with a rising attacking talent.

Gio Reyna remains a rising talent in the USMNT squad, who very well could miss out on September international duty due to a lack of fitness. The Borussia Dortmund attacker recently only returned to training in Germany and overall has yet to appearance for the Bundesliga club this season.

Berhalter has yet to speak to Reyna following last year’s dispute during the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, a dispute which led to Reyna playing only 52 minutes for the USMNT during its four matches in the tournament.

After Berhalter’s original contract expired in December, the 50-year-old was re-hired as USMNT boss and now prepares for his second spell in charge of the program. Reyna’s long-term potential remains clear and Berhalter is ready on connecting strongly once again with him whenever that time comes.

“We started this process of how to set expectations a little and figure out how we’re going to move forward together,” Berhalter said of his relationship with Reyna in an interview with Vanity Fair.

“Some of it will involve him, some of it will involve us, and eventually, hopefully, it leads towards Gio being comfortable in the team, comfortable that he’s being evaluated fairly and coached fairly and held to the same norms and standards as everybody else,” Berhalter added.

Reyna delivered a Man of the Match performance for the USMNT in his last international appearance, registering two assists in a 2-0 Concacaf Nations League Finals win over Canada last June. However, Reyna has yet to take the field for club or country in competitive action since then due to a calf injury suffered in that international showdown with the Canadians.

Borussia Dortmund’s final match before the international break comes on Friday against FC Heidenheim before the USMNT faces Uzbekistan and Oman on home soil in a pair of friendlies. Should Reyna not be deemed fit enough to head back to the United States, his next opportunity to work with Berhalter would come during the October FIFA window where Germany and Ghana square off with the Americans.