Gio Reyna’s behind-the-scenes drama at 2022 World Cup revealed

Many United States soccer fans were displeased and confused with the lack of playing time US coach Gregg Berhalter gave to Gio Reyna during the 2022 World Cup. We now have the rationale behind the decision.

Sources told The Athletic that Reyna showed a lack of effort during training ahead of the USMNT’s opening match against Wales, especially during a scrimmage against the Qatari club Al Gharafa SC. Sources described Reyna walking throughout his playing time in the scrimmage and that “caused significant frustration” within the squad.

After not being subbed in during the 1-1 draw against Wales, Reyna was so frustrated he threw his shin guards and then displayed a lackadaisical effort during the ensuing training session, so much so that DeAndre Yedlin and Aaron Long pulled him aside for a talking-to.

The situation escalated to the point where Reyna stood up during a video session and apologized to his teammates for his lack of intensity, The Athletic reported. That seemingly put an end to the drama, until Berhalter spoke on the matter.

The coach referenced the situation without explicitly naming Reyna at the HOW Institute for Society’s Summit on Moral Leadership in New York last Tuesday, although a US Soccer spokesperson told The Athletic his comments were supposed to be “explicitly off the record.”

“In this last World Cup, we had a player that was clearly not meeting expectations on and off the field,” Berhalter said in comments first published by the Charter newsletter. “One of 26 players, so it stood out. As a staff, we sat together for hours deliberating what we were going to do with this player. We were ready to book a plane ticket home, that’s how extreme it was. And what it came down to was, we’re going to have one more conversation with him, and part of the conversation was how we’re going to behave from here out. There aren’t going to be any more infractions.”

Berhalter added that he and the coaching staff knew the risks in potentially sending Reyna home, but said they were prepared to do it. Ultimately, Reyna remained with the team for its entire stay in Qatar.

“Gio obviously did not have the experience anyone hoped for at the World Cup. The situation, relationships and interactions among parties are far more complicated than what has been reported,” Reyna’s agent, Dan Segal, told The Athletic in a statement.

“It is disappointing and disrespectful for certain parties to be commenting on private team matters publicly, especially when some do so without full knowledge of the facts and others do so in a self-serving manner. At this point, our view is that nothing more is gained by those associated with the national team turning on each other, and we plan no further comment on this matter.”

There were reports that the team took a vote on whether or not Reyna should stay in Qatar with 13 votes in favor of him staying and 12 of him leaving. ESPN’s Taylor Twellman, though, disputed that report.

Reyna, 20, played in two of the four World Cup games for the United States, including seeing significant time in the knockout stage loss to the Netherlands. Reyna has made 16 appearances for the US since 2020, when he was named US Soccer’s Young Male Player of the Year. He has four goals in those appearances, most recently against Costa Rica on June 9, 2021.