What Does Mauricio Pochettino Want From Gio Reyna? ‘Show He’s More Mature’

United States men’s national soccer Mauricio pochettino is looking forward to Gio Reyna’s return. But he also laid out clear expectations for the 22-year-old Borussia Mönchengladbach midfielder.”If a player doesn’t behave well,” Pochettino told me, “he’s not going to be with us.” Gio Reyna has returned to the U.S. Men’s Team. Reyna has been recalled to the U.S. men’s team by Pochettino. He was surprised by his recall last week. The Americans will be playing their final tune-ups for 2025 against Paraguay this Friday, and Uruguay next November 18. The former star has played just 146 minutes for the Americans in all competitions. ‘Gladbach this season, with no goals or assists. Reyna, who has been beset by injury throughout his young career, has not played an entire match at club level since March 2022. He’s made just one appearance for the U.S. under Pochettino, a 21-minute cameo off the bench in a March loss to Canada in the Concacaf Nations League third-place match. And, of course, Reyna’s return and some recent interviews he’s done have brought back into the spotlight that infamous incident at the 2022 World Cup that roiled two of the most prominent families in American soccer.”We are going to make very clear in [Reyna’Pochettino continued, “The past is the past.” “Now we give the opportunity to this guy to show that he’s more mature, and behave in the way that we expect and then perform.”How Berhalter-Reyna saga defined ’22 World CupIf you recall, Reyna is the son of two-time U.S. World Cup captain Claudio Reyna and former women’s national team winger Danielle Egan. And he was infamously almost sent home midway through the 2022 World Cup by then-coach Gregg Berhalter.A week after the USMNT’s round of 16 elimination by the Netherlands in Qatar, The Athletic reported that Reyna “showed an alarming lack of effort in training” before and after U.S.’s opening match, “threw his shin guards after not being subbed” into that 1-1 tie with Wales and was confronted by several veteran teammates who were frustrated by his “lack of intensity” during the sessions. Gio Reyna with former USMNT Coach Gregg Berhalter during the 2022 World Cup. (Photo by Ercin Erturk/Anadolu Agency through Getty Images). Berhalter addressed the issue at a New York conference a few days after returning home. Was supposed to be an on-the-record conversation, but quickly became public.Berhalter, without mentioning Reyna by name, said: “In the last World Cup we had a clear player who was not meeting expectations both on and off-the-field.” “One of the 26 players. It stood out. We spent hours as a staff debating what to do with the player.”We were ready to book a plane ticket home — that’s how extreme it was,” Berhalter went on. “We’re going have one last conversation with him and part of that conversation will be how we behave going forward,” Berhalter said. There aren’t going to be any more infractions.”Reyna said sorry to his teammates. But the saga exploded as an international news story after Reyna’s parents informed the U.S. Soccer Federation that Berhalter had physically assaulted his now-wife three decades earlier, when they and Egan were freshmen soccer University of North Carolina players. U.S. Soccer rehired Berhalter in the end after an independent probe into the incident. Berhalter was fired just over a year later following the USMNT’s group stage ouster at the 2024 Copa América. Pochettino was appointed as his successor last fall. Gio Reyna made his last USMNT appearance in March. (Photo by Robin Alam/ISI Photos/Getty Images) Even before being summoned this month by the former Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain manager, Reyna made news after the Associated Press asked him if he’d do things differently in Qatar if given the chance.”Maybe in certain ways,” he said, adding that he “was just upset that, you know, I wasn’t really playing.””I’m not just going to sort of sit here and take all the blame for something that was made out to be completely my fault, which I believe it wasn’t, and also my family’s, too.Reyna had made similar remarks in another interview.Reyna said to Men in Blazers that it was hard to say what anyone would have done differently. “Maybe they would have done it, or maybe not,” Reyna told Men in Blazers. To me, it’s not even important at this point. I don’t think it matters to anyone else.”‘If You Don’t Behave Well, You Can’t Perform’ During his 15-year coaching tenure that included a Champions League Final appearance with Tottenham and some of the most prominent stars in global football, Pochettino worked with many of the world’s biggest names. Since being hired as U.S. boss 14 months ago, he’s also often spoken about the importance of his players sacrificing personal ambitions for the collective good. “[Lionel] Messi or [Kylian] Mbappé or Neymar were very good teammates,” Pochettino said. “They are able to balance their talent with their ego.” They are also the best on the pitch. If you have an ego and behave badly, and don’t perform on the field, then what is the purpose of having this player in your squad?” Having coached the likes of Neymar and Mbappé and Messi at PSG, Pochettino has dealt with top talent and big egos. The Argentine has said that he will not hold Reyna responsible for the Qatar incident. Pochettino said, “Gio’s a young man who is talented.” “We can’t say this person or that one needs to be gone because they didn’t behave. Always give a chance. At the same time, we need them to demonstrate what is expected of them.  He continued, “Sometimes it’s possible to be surprised.” Because people need to know sometimes what to do. Some players act badly because they don’t know what to do. [coaches]As leaders, we didn’t clearly state what we expected. Now it’s their turn. I don’t give a damn about the past. I believe that it is important for everyone to have the same opportunity.At that point, the player is responsible. Pochettino stated that if you do not behave well, you will be unable to perform because the team must work as a perfect symphony. “The synergy must be perfect. Otherwise, we won’t be able to succeed. To be successful, we must fight with the same team energy. It’s not just about the 11-man starting lineup. It’s not just about the starting 11. FOLLOW Personalize your FOX Sport experience by following your favorite players.
2025-11-12 21:20:39