Gio Reyna not only etched his name into U.S. men’s national team history in Sunday’s Concacaf Nations League Final vs. Canada, but he walked away with Man of the Match honors in the Americans’ dominant performance.
Reyna registered two assists in the USMNT’s 2-0 win over Canada, helping the Americans repeat as Nations League winners. The 20-year-old’s stellar performance earned him SBI Man of the Match honors as he became a two-time winner of the competition.
Reyna’s corner kick in the 12th minute was headed home by Chris Richards, boosting the USMNT in front 1-0. Richards snuck in front of Alistair Johnston and powered his header past Milan Borjan for his first senior goal.
Reyna’s playmaking abilities were at it again in the 34th minute as his through ball pass was stroked home by Folarin Balogun for a 2-0 USMNT lead. After picking up possession, Reyna raced upfield before slotting a pass behind the Canada backline for Balogun to slot home.
Although Reyna was substituted off in the 45th minute due to a calf injury, his first-half impact was key in the USMNT finishing the job at Allegiant Stadium. He created the most chances (3), completed two dribbles, and won five of his eight duels.
Reyna edged out Chris Richards, Folarin Balogun, Antonee Robinson, and Yunus Musah for Man of the Match honors.
What did you think of Reyna’s performance? Where do you think his best position on the field is? Do you see his USMNT role growing into the fall?
Share your thoughts below.
It means we have a lot of players with a lot of incentive to play very well and prove something.
This is not a bad thing.
The next couple of months will be interesting in the transfer market:
– Dortmund has placed Reyna on the transfer market, asking for bids
– Pulisic is shopping for a new club and away from the chaos that Chelsea has become
– Assuming Balogun is being shopped around based on his season in France
– Juventus is shopping McKennie
– Adams certain to leave Leeds
– Pepi is certain to be moving
And from MLS:
– Maybe Atlanta shops for suitable buyers for Miles Robinson
– Does San Jose looks for a good price for Cowell
…and probably others
-Weah has been rumored to be moving
-Musah definitely will be in a new location by the end of the window
-Turner, Horvath, and Steffen could all be in new locations (won’t be with Forest or ManCity)
-Does Richards leave if Palace can’t move Guehi?
-Ferreira is said to be on the move to Europe this summer as well.
-John Tolkin is another one on the Gold Cup roster who is thought to be moving.
-Some speculation Jalen Neal maybe moving and needs a few GC caps to speed along work permits.
I think we need to view this as a positive sign that so many US players are active in the transfer market. This is how many teams make money in Europe , and now in MLS as well.
It means we have a lot of players with a lot of incentive to play very well and prove something.
This is not a bad thing.
Great comments guys. One of the things I love about SBI (usually).
I am beginning to think that Reyna, Pulisic and the other guys who have plagued by injuries aren’t fragile but rather play in Concacaf and are not being protected. Lots of our guys odyssey with injury starts while playing for our country. Reyna should retire from the team until 2025 because nothing between now and then really matter, compared with doing our best in 2026
I said this a couple years ago and was told I didn’t have a clue. I completely agree.
I would think that all of the teams with skilled players should be calling for a review of CONCACAF’s reffing procedures. Most of the teams have star players in their domestic leagues and playing abroad where these tactics impair their continuing development as well as the ability to get paid for their skill.
I expect the hard tactics from some of the minor teams in CONCACAF, up to and including Panama. But I was disappointed in the more than just “hard fouls” by Canada. And I was really disappointed in the overall CONCACAF-iness of Mexico against the US, which I also saw a bit in the third place game against Panama. No, I am not saying it is anything new, but I agree with Alex – maybe if I am a skilled player, I say no to some call ups.
To be fair Aaronson was giving Davies the Concacaf treatment early on last night. Didn’t see much of that after they switched him to the right or when they brought him back left in 2nd half.
Another added benefit of sitting stars out of Concacaf fixtures is that it frees up space for other players to show their stuff with the national team. One of the main reasons that our current crop of players got so much opportunity to play is that the people in front of them failed spectacularly in 2018 leaving little to loose by playing the new kids. The USA talent pipeline didn’t shut itself off between then and now and there are skilled players coming of age every day. There is still nothing to lose because by giving new players opportunities because we don’t have to worry about 2026 qualification. We had to use 3rd choice players yesterday so who is to say that the situation won’t be the same in 2026? Lets build depth while protecting our stars. It’s a win-win.
Rumor has it that Gio might have a calf strain or calf tear and will have an MRI today. Let’s hope for the best.
@Jonnyrazor. “The Concacaf treatment” 🙂 Nice!
The US clearly struggled with possession when Reyna was out. Multiple times he came away with the ball in traffic when surrounded by 3 or 4 Canadians. The second assist was special. Clearly he was the key for the US.
Not bad for a diva shitbag who can’t play defense.
Yup…and if you didn’t notice the difference between the Gio that was out there this fixture window and the one we’ve seen in the past, I dunno what to say. Of all the players who took a big leap forwards Gio’s was the biggest, and probably the most impactful as far as the USMNT goes.
He’s still not a great defender, mind, and I doubt we’ll ever see him press…but his sudden willingness to track back and put in an honest shift defensively was obvious, and Mo Edu did comment that BJ had apparently really been challenging him on that, apparently drilling into him that his defensive work would connect him to the game. Which it clearly did.
The other big switch was his body language, demeanor, and general positivity. He’s clearly been made aware that pouting and being a pissy little bitch towards his teammates is no bueno. I saw a couple of moments here or there but in general it was obvious he was really working on that.
Here’s hoping all that’s maturity and not just a passing phase. But it was really, really good to see. I’ve been as hard on Gio as anybody but the last two games demonstrated massive progress…and the guy we just saw is one a whole bunch of top teams in Europe will want. Gio’s always had rare, rare skill on the ball; talent has never been Gio’s problem. Old Gio was a bench player and super-sub; this Gio’s a centerpiece even for a Champions League squad if he can sustain that form.
Now we just need to get him some bubble wrap and rubber bumpers.
@ quozzel…GOAL
this is not the same GIO as before, at all. He has learned, grown, more responsible. Great to see
Instead of the diva whiner, he was a MAN
no more parental shadows for him
Quozzel,
“Yup…and if you didn’t notice the difference between the Gio that was out there this fixture window and the one we’ve seen in the past, I dunno what to say.”
The difference?
1. He was being managed by a new USMNT manager.
beachbum mentioned parental shadows. I have this crazy theory that Gregg, who has known Gio all of his life and was practically an uncle, was too much a part of the family. Maybe you’ve seen uncles who were otherwise good bosses who could not manage their nephews to save their lives. I know that I have seen that and it can get pretty awkward.
If he can Gregg should keep BJ around just to manage Gio.
2. Also, at BVB since the World Cup, he’s been forced to fight for minutes of playing time and managed to impress when he got time. He’s clearly aware now that he’s for sale and the quality of his future career level depends on him impressing the hell out of everyone. When you are a hot shit teenage wonder boy, Erling Haaland’s American Dream, if you get a lot of success right away, it can be hard to handle if you wind up having to actually fight for a job. You don’t really know how to do that.
That was the difference between Clint and LD.
Clint fought for everything he ever had from day one. He knew how to fight for a job.
LD was a super star the second he stepped on an MLS field. He did not have to fight for a job at his club or for his country until much later in life .
It’s really hard to learn how later in life.
It’s good for Gio that this is happening when he is still only 20.
He can be the new KDeBruyne. But that ‘s hard to do if everyone thinks you are a jerk.
Balo’s positioning was so good on that too. He owned Kennedy all night. I think Herdman might have out tinkered himself not starting Vitoria, but maybe Flo just goes by him for pace all night. Shout out to Alistair Johnson showing college soccer can still be a pathway, then MLS now playing with CCV at Celtic. He always gives Pulisic fits.
Yea when I saw the replay from the opposite angle you could see how well he held that guy off and stayed so balanced to really put his foot through it.
Very veteran looking finish
That was so good…and yeah, I was personally salivating a bit over the Balogun/Vitorio matchup because I thought Balogun would barbecue him; Vitorio looks a bit more like Lurch from The Addams Family with each passing year. Switching to Kennedy didn’t really help them much. He definitely looked more than a little frizzle-fried when he came off.
The thing that just jumped off the field at me about Balogun this outing was how incredibly dynamic he was. He initiates. He hunts. He doesn’t wait to be served, he goes and finds the game, even if that means tracking the ball almost back to the US’s own penalty box. He did show a willingness to make hard runs against Mexico, but against Canada he was also showing intelligence and purpose with his movement. It was like watching a sword thrust.
In the past Pulisic was the one really creative force who could make things happen…with a suddenly positive Gio in the game there were two, and against Canada, Balogun made it three…and Balogun can do it even with a centerback draped all over him trying to knock him off the ball. He’s not a huge dude but he’s remarkably strong. And with those guys combining…hey, all of a sudden unlocking the box doesn’t seem to be a problem anymore. Crazy, huh?
England’s going to regret letting us have him, bigly. US fans need to send a huge Thank You card to Garreth Southgate…who was busy talking up Ollie Watkins and Eddie Nketiah in his decision to refuse to call Balogun up. Rock on, Garreth.
Balogun also made Jonathan David look like a traffic cone last night, which certainly eases the jealousy I’ve always felt over seeing David get away to Canada. David is a very good striker…but he is assuredly not Balogun. The difference in movement and mobility is night and day.
It’s early days, but I definitely saw the Thierry Henry comparisons folks have been making. I wonder if Arsenal is still going to sell him this summer. They shouldn’t.