Gio Reyna succeeds in bringing “a bit of life” to USMNT attack

Gio Reyna has played important roles in the U.S. men’s national team’s previous two CONCACAF Nations League triumphs and the midfielder carried that trend over to the Americans’ most recent run to the tournament final.

Reyna delivered two assists off the bench on Thursday as Gregg Berhalter’s squad defeated Jamaica 3-1 after extra time. The Nottingham Forest loanee has struggled for playing time in England this year, but didn’t let that stop him from earning Man of the Match honors in Thursday’s semifinal win over the Reggae Boyz.

“I think [Jamaica] scoring in the first minute made it pretty tough,” Reyna told reporters postmatch in a press conference. “[I] just [wanted to] affect the game. It was pretty simple. It was not our best performance today, and I just tried to bring a bit of life to the team.”

“I think their idea as a team was pretty clear after that, to sit deep and just close the middle and make it difficult for us [with] fouls,” he added. “You know how it goes. Some games are just really, really tough and they have a lot of quality and a lot of athleticism around the pitch and it was hard to cross. It was hard to go from the middle. But yeah, we stuck with it. Really proud of the team. And moving on to Sunday is the most important.”

The USMNT attack struggled heavily in breaking down Jamaica’s low defensive block, but Reyna’s entrance into the match certainly delivered a spark. Reyna was quickly connecting passes with his teammates, which later carried over to his two-most important contributions to the match.

Fellow substitute Haji Wright slotted home a pair of Reyna assists as the Americans grabbed and extended their lead in extra time. Wright’s name went onto the scoresheet, but it will be Reyna’s name who gets mentioned as the game-changing player in a crucial turnaround result for the USMNT.

“I think he showed why he got called into camp,” Berhalter said of Reyna. “Amazing quality, amazing talent. And for us, it’s about supporting him through the difficult times of adapting to the Premier League. His quality is unquestionable when you see the plays he made on both the second and third goal. He has that quality that not many players have, and it’s clear that he deserves to play.”

“I know Gio is a player with a lot of talent and is a player that can pick those kind of passes,” Wright said postmatch of Reyna. “I know from watching and playing with him that he’s that guy – if you make the right runs, he’ll find you. That was the case today.”

The Reyna-Berhalter relationship had been through some tough times in 2022 and 2023, but looks to have been rekindled over the past year. Reyna played a vital role in the USMNT’s Nations League triumph last summer and since has continued to deliver in big-time moments during Berhalter’s second spell as head coach.

Despite past issues between the duo at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Reyna admitted his focus is on the USMNT’s present and continuing to play a part in Berhalter’s plans.

“Obviously what happened, happened, but I think both of us are so far past it, and just so focused on the group that, yeah, it’s not even an issue at all anymore,” Reyna said. “We’re just so far past it.”