Report: USMNT's Reyna was almost sent home from Qatar over lack of effort
The mysterious lack of playing time for Giovanni Reyna was one of the major talking points before and after the United States men's national team was knocked out of the 2022 World Cup.
Just over a week after the USMNT lost to the Netherlands in the round of 16, it's been revealed that the Borussia Dortmund midfielder was nearly sent home during the tournament due to his alarming training performances, sources told The Athletic's Paul Tenorio and Sam Stejskal.
Reyna acknowledged in a statement that he was "devastated" after learning from head coach Gregg Berhalter that his role would be limited in Qatar. He said that it affected his behavior afterward.
"I let my emotions get the best of me and affect my training and behavior for a few days after learning about my limited role," Reyna said Monday on Instagram.
The 20-year-old reportedly showed a lack of effort as the United States trained for its World Cup opening game against Wales in November. His perceived disinterest continued in a pre-tournament scrimmage when Reyna was reported to have walked around for the majority of his time on the field.
U.S. teammates, including DeAndre Yedlin and Aaron Long, addressed their concerns with Reyna after his disinterested body language continued in a post-Wales training session, The Athletic added. His teammates urged Reyna to change his attitude and involve himself more moving forward.
Reyna admitted that he eventually addressed his issues with teammates, reportedly apologizing during a video session. The issue was thought to be resolved within the team after the apology, and Reyna returned to training as normal.
Berhalter seemingly referenced the situation during his appearance at the HOW Institute for Society’s Summit on Moral Leadership in New York last Tuesday.
"In this last World Cup, we had a player that was clearly not meeting expectations on and off the field," the USMNT head coach said. "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.
"As a coach, the way you can deal with things most appropriately is going back to your values. Because it's difficult to send a player home. It was going to be a massive controversy. You would have been reading about it for five days straight. But we were prepared to do it because he wasn't meeting the standards of the group, and the group was prepared to do it as well."
In his statement Monday, Reyna expressed disappointment about how the story has been covered.
"I am disappointed that there is continuing coverage of this matter (as well as some highly fictionalized versions of events) and extremely surprised that anyone on the U.S. men's team staff would contribute to it," Reyna said.
"Coach Berhalter has always said that issues that arise with the team will stay 'in house' so we can focus on team unity and progress. I love my team, I love representing my country, and I am focusing now only on improving and growing as a soccer player and a person.
"I hope that going forward each person involved in U.S. Soccer focuses only on what is in the best interest of the men's national team so we can enjoy great success at the World Cup in 2026."
Reyna finished the 2022 World Cup with two substitute appearances against England in the group stage and the Netherlands in the round of 16. The attacking midfielder has two goals in 10 Bundesliga games for Borussia Dortmund this season.