A WASTE OF TALENT

Gio Reyna needs to find a new team and the right one, ASAP

Erling Haaland and Gio Reyna (right) celebrate a Borussia Dortmund goal in 2020. (USA TODAY Sports)

Back in March, U.S. men's national team midfielder Gio Reyna talked about how much he was "excited to play a tournament in front of my home fans" at the FIFA Club World Cup.

Here is his full quote that was posted on FIFA.com:

"I think playing on home soil with the national team or club is always super fun for me, and, yeah, I’m looking forward to bringing some of the guys and the club over to my area and showing them a few things and answering their questions about my country. Still, I think, yeah, I’m just excited to play a tournament in front of my home fans."

When Borussia Dortmund played Fluminense to a scoreless draw at MetLife on Tuesday, June 17, Reyna had one of the best seats in the house, on the Bundesliga's team bench. The only time he got up was to leave the pitch for halftime and then after the game. Translated: he did not play.

Certainly not the end of the world or Club World Cup for the Bedford, N.Y. native, but you have to wonder if Reyna will see the light of day in the competition at all. And, if so, for how long? As a late-match substitute to mop up a victory?

Dortmund head coach Nico Kovac did not indicate if he will use Reyna. Dortmund can wind up with a three-and-out fate or perhaps reach the Round of 16 and beyond. Who knows how much time Reyna will see on the field, even as a late second-half substitute?

Before the Club World Cup, Kovac talked about the 22-year-old.

"Gio is a player of Dortmund since four or five years," he said. "He is a part of my team at the moment. Gio is for sure a player who didn't play so much, but we know exactly his strengths, but we have top players here in the squad.

"So, the confidence is very big, so hopefully every player can get minutes, but I can't promise you this is depending also on the results, also injuries, but my ambition is to give every player minutes. But this is always in relation to the results."

After Tuesday's game, Kovac was asked about Reyna's status with the team.

"We have some top players," he said. "Whatever I see in the training on the pitch, and that's how I choose players. So, some good moments from all of them and together for sure ahead."

Translated: Kovac side-stepped the issue.

Reyna is part of the Dortmund squad, instead of the USMNT for the Concacaf Gold Cup, and the Americans can use all the help they can get in that competition. Perhaps not necessarily in the group stage, but when they reach the knockout round, the likes of confederation powers such as Mexico, Canada, Costa Rica and recent nemesis Panama will be potential roadblocks.

I can't predict whether Reyna will see any action for Dortmund, but my gut feeling is that he would be fine seeing plenty of playing time with the U.S., essentially using its B team, in the Gold Cup.

In other words, this month of June and part of July could wind up being a wasteland for someone as talented as Reyna and for someone who needs playing time.

He recently completed his fourth season with Dortmund (he was loaned to Nottingham Forest in 2024). He finished with two goals and three yellow cards over 16 matches, three starts over 342 minutes in Bundesliga action, which is not even four full games. He came off the bench 13 times.

Not what you want from someone who has so much potential and who can be a vital part of the national team.

At the ripe old age of 22, Reyna should be entering the prime of his playing career, causing chaos for many midfielders, defenders and eventually goalkeepers.

You can't do that sitting down while watching your teammates compete.

Given that he has sat the bench more than having seen the playing field for his German team, Reyna needs to find a team somewhere in Europe that will give him an opportunity to show how much damage he can do as an attacking player.

We have been teased with his flashes of brilliance.

At the age of 17 and 66 days Reyna became the youngest American to play in the Bundesliga, beating the record set by USMNT teammate Christian Pulisic. In his first league contest in June 2020, Reyna's clever, short touch pass set up Erling Haaland’s goal in a 2-0 victory over RB Leipzig. He became the first 17-year-old in the Bundesliga to record three assists in a game, in Dortmund's 4-0 win over SC Freiburg on Oct. 3, 2020. He also became the youngest American to perform in a UEFA Champions League match at the age of 17.

That all led to Reyna becoming being named the U.S. Soccer Young Male Player of the Year in 2020.

You probably already know that Reyna has some really good soccer DNA, coming from U.S. Soccer royalty. His parents, Claudio and Danielle (formerly Egan) Reyna performed for the men's and women's national teams. His father enjoyed a 15-year career playing for mostly for European clubs (Bayer Leverkusen, Wolfsburg, Rangers, Sunderland and Manchester City)) before finishing his career with the New York Red Bulls in 2008. Claudio captained the USMNT on many occasions, making 112 international appearances. Danielle wasn't necessarily in the same orbit as her husband, but she was a talented player.

Yours truly got an opportunity to see her compete in the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association State Cup back in the day, and Egan, as she was known as then, was an influential player for her side, and was considered one of the best players on Long Island.

That led to her playing for legendary head coach Anson Dorrance at the University of North Carolina woman's powerhouse.

You also probably know that the Reyna's make a big fuss and complained to U.S. Soccer hierarchy about their son's lack of playing time under Gregg Berhalter at the 2022 World Cup and brought up a situation between the U.S. head coach and his future when they were in college. That led to an embarrassing scenario for all parties concerned, and a soap opera that the federation would have liked to have put under the rug.

Parents might be able to complain to a youth soccer coach about the lack of playing for their kid, but you can't do that at the professional level.

One thing is certain:

Gio Reyna has talent, tons of it. He needs to play somewhere, and unless something happens in this tournament, it should not be Borussia Dortmund.

Yes, no doubt injuries have slowed down Reyna's progress at times.

“We believe we can go into every tournament to try and win it, you know it’s going to be difficult, but we will try and make a run and see where it goes from there," Reyna was quoted on FIFA.com. "The main goal is, for sure, to believe in ourselves and see where it goes.”

The big question is whether anyone out there who believes in Reyna? As I have learned from many sports over the decades, all a player needs is one coach who believes in him or her.

There have been all sorts of reports and rumors that Reyna might be heading toward Italy's Serie A or England's Premier League. Sky Sports reported in January that it had demanded between $17.2 million and 20.6 million for Reyna. That is an outrageous sum, especially for someone who hasn't played regularly for the team.

Regardless of whether he plays a minute or becomes an important part of Dortmund's Club World Cup team in the next few weeks, Reyna needs to find a team.

I don’t think he will get the proper playing time under Kovac.

It's time to move on, as one of the U.S.'s best offensive threats is just pining away on the bench and his great talents wasted.

Gio Reyna needs to play regularly over the next 11 months, so he could be eligible for selection to the USMNT for the 2026 World Cup. If he doesn't measure up to head coach Mauricio Pochettino's expectations, so be it.

But Reyna needs to play before any decision is made to get the best out of his ability.

If not, it could be a waste of talent for the most important soccer tournament in the states in more than a generation.

Which is something the USMNT can ill afford.