Giovanni “Gio” Reyna has quickly gone from being known mostly as former USMNT star Claudio Reyna’s son to one of the most promising young American players alive.
At just 17, Reyna has broken into the first team at Bundesliga powerhouse Borussia Dortmund, and earned yet another start on Saturday in an important match against RB Leipzig.
Reyna showed why the manager has been so trusting of him, even at a young age, when he had a lovely little assist in the first half to set up Erling Haaland for the opener.
Reyna makes a run into the box, and receives a cross to his feet. Most young players, heck — most players period — would feel the pressure of being in the box with defenders around them, and would try to just get a shot on frame.
Reyna didn’t do that. Reyna paused, then gently slid an inch perfect pass through the defenders to the feet of Haaland, who buried it.
Sure, it looks like a simple touch pass, and if he wasn’t a 17-year-old American, I probably wouldn’t be writing this post. But still, it’s extremely encouraging to see a player at his age show that maturity and awareness in a situation when most young players panic.
Reyna didn’t. He found the right pass, and set his team up for success. Bravo.
