Doha: When Gio Reyna made his debut for America two years ago, he completed a rare football triangle – a father, mother and a son, who all represented their national sides.
Born to Claudio Reyna – America’s men’s soccer legend and Danielle Egan, a former member of the US women’s national soccer team, Gio is the first US World Cup player, who had both his parents play for the national teams.
Reyna, who plays for Bundesliga club Borussia Dortmund as an attacking midfielder, joined the US World Cup squad in Doha on Sunday, exactly on his 20th birthday – as the Stars and Stripes gear up for their opening match against Wales on November 21 at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium.
Gio’s father, who is currently the sporting director for Austin FC, was a part of four World Cup teams and played with several European clubs including the Premier League side Manchester City as a midfielder. His mother, Egan made six appearances for the women’s national team.
Gio told US men’s soccer twitter handle while his mother is less familiar in the world of football, but she has played a key role in his career.
“She won four national championships. So I think when you mentioned my dad, you definitely got to mention my mom, too,” said Gio. “And in terms of where I got my ability from. So she’s yeah, she’s been so helpful and it’s yeah, it’s cool to see this, obviously.”
The current US coach Gregg Berhalter describes Gio as a “special” player, hoping him to play a key role for his team at the upcoming World Cup.
Gio says he has learned most of the football skills from his father, a former US captain.
“I guess I got the best athleticism and I’d like to say I got my father’s touch and technical ability. In terms of controlling the ball and you know how we dribbled and how we kind of got around the field in a way, I think we have a lot of similarities, but I think my mom was more of the beast athlete, so I think I got the best of both,” the Dortmund player said.
“It’s cool. It’s similar kind of career paths. He obviously started in Germany, too, when he was 20 or 21. I’m not sure how old he was. I hopefully will play a lot more than he did in his first World Cup and in my first World Cup.”
It would be a moment of pride for Gio when he represents Team US in Qatar.
“To be the first father, mother and son trio to have all played for the senior national team is really cool,” he said.
“So hopefully one day I have kids that play professional soccer too. I don’t want to say that too early, but yeah, it’d be really cool to just keep it going and yeah, I think soccer is definitely in our DNA and in our blood.”
Berhalter must be hoping for his most dynamic player to stay fit during the US campaign as Gio has been sidelined for 276 days over the last 14 months due to injuries and illness.
The US is in the ‘Group of Death’ that also includes England and Iran. After playing the Wales, the Berhalter’s side will face England on November 25 and will square off with Iran
their last Group B game four days later.
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