U.S. star Giovanni Reyna, just 18, is already making an impact in Germany
By Doug McIntyre
FOX Sports Soccer Writer
It’s come to the point where we’re not really surprised by Giovanni Reyna anymore.
After all, almost two full years have passed since the son of former United States World Cup captain Claudio Reyna and former U.S. women’s national teamer Danielle Egan broke into the lineup with Borussia Dortmund, Europe’s premier talent mill, becoming the youngest American to appear in the star-studded UEFA Champions League in early 2020.
Reyna has already played in 66 games across all competitions for Dortmund. Forty-eight of those have been in the German Bundesliga, including Saturday’s 5-2 pasting of Eintracht Frankfurt in the 2021-22 opener, in which Reyna scored. He’s a key player for BVB in his third full season with the club.
It’s easy to forget that he’s still only 18.
"I’m getting old," Reyna, who won’t turn 19 until November, joked during a Sunday Zoom call with reporters.
Reyna’s path to the highest levels of the world’s most popular sport follows the route charted by USMNT headliner Christian Pulisic. Pulisic also began his professional career in Dortmund before being sold for $73 million to Chelsea, whom Pulisic helped win the European title last May.
Yet even since Reyna’s debut 18 months ago, several other American talents have emerged, including Chris Richards at Bayern Munich and Yunus Musah with Valencia in Spain.
Just Friday, 18-year-old Joe Scally — Reyna’s close friend and fellow academy graduate of MLS club New York City FC — helped Borussia Monchengladbach open its campaign with a point against reigning German champ Bayern in his first Bundesliga match.
Reyna isn’t the shiny, new toy anymore. He’s still so young, but he’s maturing fast, ranking arguably as the most gifted member of the U.S. player pool after Pulisic. Reyna helped the U.S. win the CONCACAF Nations League in June, with the rangy attacker scoring a crucial first-half equalizer in the final against rival Mexico.
Some at Dortmund even believe that Reyna, who can play in central midfield or on either wing, could wind up being better than Pulisic, a source with knowledge of the club’s thinking told FOX Sports.
His rise so far has been at least as impressive. Because of COVID-19, this summer marked the first time that Reyna went through a normal preseason with the black and yellow.
"I’m getting stronger mentally and physically," Reyna said Sunday. "I think this season can be a really exciting one for me. I’m really comfortable with the guys on the team, so it’s all slowly coming together. Hopefully, I can have a really big impact."
Playing with Erling Haaland can’t hurt. The Norwegian forward is a generational talent, nothing less than the heir apparent to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
At 21, Haaland is the most coveted scorer on the planet. He and Reyna have developed an almost telepathic chemistry over the past 18 months, with the latter routinely assisting on the former’s goals. Their roles reversed Saturday, with Haaland setting up Reyna’s strike.
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"He keeps on getting better," Reyna said of Haaland. "It seems like every day he’s picking up something new and adding it to his game. It’s hard to say what the ceiling is for him. He can be unbelievable. He can be amazing. I mean, he already is. He can really be one of the best ever."
Chelsea came calling for Haaland earlier this summer. But for now, it looks as though he’ll play at least one more season in Dortmund. If the opening weekend is any indication, his presence not only makes BVB capable of a deep Champions League run but also offers the club its best chance in almost a decade to end Bayern’s streak of nine straight Bundesliga titles.
The longstanding rivals meet Tuesday for the first time this campaign with the German Supercup on the line.
"The team chemistry is on a high right now," Reyna said. "It’s the best since I’ve been at Dortmund."
Good vibes are plentiful within the USMNT’s locker room these days, too. Following Nations League and Gold Cup triumphs this summer, the national team reconvenes next month ahead of crucial World Cup qualifying matches at El Salvador and Honduras and at home to Canada.
Reyna will play a major role in his country’s quest to return to the tournament after missing out in 2018.
Until then, his focus must remain on his club. Reyna knows that any dip in form could land him on manager Marco Rose’s substitutes bench — such is the depth within BVB’s squad.
"I understand that I’m going to have to perform," he said.
Having his mother in town is a welcome distraction after he was separated from his parents for much of the past two years. Before this weekend, neither Danielle nor Claudio had seen Gio start a game at BVB’s cavernous, 83,000-seat Westfalenstadion.
"It’s just great to have her here," Reyna said. "I had to make sure I scored a goal for her."
Was anyone really surprised?
One of the most prominent soccer journalists in North America, Doug McIntyre has covered United States men’s and women’s national teams in more than a dozen countries, including multiple FIFA World Cups. Before joining FOX Sports, the New York City native was a staff writer for Yahoo Sports and ESPN. Follow him on Twitter @ByDougMcIntyre.