United States coach Gregg Berhalter has still not spoken to Gio Reyna since taking charge of the team he led to the 2022 World Cup.
In an interview with Vanity purseBerhalter reflected on the World Cup – and the incident with the Reyna family that led to a lengthy investigation into his conduct.
The USMNT coach has expressed regret over comments he made at the HOW Institute about Gio, which led to retaliation from Gio’s parents – Claudio and Danielle Reyna – and a review of a domestic incident between Berhalter and his current wife in the 1970s. Ninety.
Berhalter told the magazine that while away from the position he “called with almost every player.”
But, as the magazine puts it, “the main exception is Reyna, who Berhalter has still not spoken to since the World Cup.”
Gregg Berhalter still hasn’t spoken to Gio Reyna since he was rehired by the USMNT
Berhalter thinks he and Gio Reyna (7) can repair their relationship
The coach says he has consulted mediation experts to make sure communication with Gio Reyna is going “the right way.”
“It’s not something where you just pick up the phone and say, ‘Hey buddy, this is how it’s going to be.’ There’s work to be done,” Berhalter told Vanity Fair.
Berhalter called the investigation “an unfortunate period” for him and his family, but added that it “brought us together and helped us communicate.”
He says his comments were meant to highlight the USMNT’s “great team culture,” but knows that point may not have gotten across.
“The most important thing for me is that players trust the staff, and if this is seen as a breach of trust in any way, then of course I am sorry, because that was not the intention,” he said.
Berhalter believes that he and Gio will be able to get over this incident. He says their “goals are much bigger than any individual relationship,” while referring to the Borussia Dortmund star as a “super talented player who can help this team.”
“We both want the US to win the World Cup and be very successful,” Berhalter said of his relationship with Reyna, “and now they’re looking for a way to work together to achieve that.”
Berhalter added: “We started this process to set expectations a little bit and figure out how we can move forward together.
Berhalter hopes he can get back to a point where Gio is ‘comfortable with the team’
Berhalter declined to talk about whether his relationship with Claudio and Danielle Reyna — two people he and his family considered friends — could ever be mended.
“Part of it will be about him, part of it will be about us, and ultimately hopefully it will lead to Gio feeling comfortable on the team, comfortable being judged fairly and being coached fairly and feeling adheres to the same norms and standards as everyone else. .’
But when asked about the prospects for his relationship with Claudio and Danielle Reyna – parents whom Berhalter considered close friends before their comments led to the investigation – the coach said: “I don’t think this is a topic I enjoy talking about .’
Tom Kuldt, the writer of the Vanity Fair piece, said, “As we spoke it was clear that Berhalter is still tending to wounds after the ordeal.” The Reynas declined to comment on the story for Vanity Fair.
When asked about the long hiatus he had after his contract with US Soccer expired, Berhalter said, “Mentally I put myself in a position where if it happened, it happened, if it didn’t happen, it didn’t happen.”
“There was always a huge place in my heart for (the USMNT) job, and it was always going to be a dream opportunity, but at some point I think you kind of distance yourself.”
But after the investigation cleared Berhalter of further wrongdoing, his name resurfaced in the conversation and he became manager again.
That decision was ultimately made by Matt Crocker, who was hired as sporting director in April.
He said he “put myself in a position mentally” to accept either outcome with the US job
“It’s clear that Gregg wanted to be involved in that process and we’ve done the same due diligence as we did on all candidates,” Crocker said.
“I’m sure people said, ‘Oh, he’s done this job before. Where’s the new name?’ Crocker said, “The most important thing to me is that I kept to the process. Would there have been a better outside sound around the appointment of a so-called ‘name within the game?’ Probably.
“My job is to have a due diligence process in place, and that we stick to that process. In the end, the best candidate gets the job.’
Crocker’s long and convoluted process — which involved putting candidates through multiple kinds of tests of their abilities — was, he says, based on what Berhalter brought to the table.
Add to that the many public statements of support from players like Christian Pulisic, and it seemed to US Soccer that bringing back Berhalter was a tasty choice.
But what the federation may not have taken into account is the backlash they would receive from the public – and former players – in the wake.
Clint Dempsey said he was “confused” by the decision, lamenting that US Soccer “wasted so much time” getting back to “who we had in the beginning.”
Roger Bennett, the co-host of the “Men in Blazers” podcast, said the social media reaction to Berhalter’s new hire was “largely not positive.”
Berhalter says he intends to talk to Reyna before calling him again
But Reyna only recently returned to training with Dortmund following an injury he sustained
Even to this day – months after the decision was made – a simple scroll through Twitter shows that many fans are having trouble justifying the choice to bring him back.
As Kuldt wrote, the chance to take on a new manager was “an opportunity to make a final break from the Reyna saga, to start a fresh start under someone who could bring a fresh perspective. By rehiring Berhalter, the federation essentially deemed him worth it.’
The answer to the question of whether the effort is worth it starts with the first games of the Second Berhalter era: home games against Uzbekistan and Oman in St. Louis and Minneapolis respectively.
The rosters for that competition will be announced on Wednesday and Reyna will be discussed within that team.
However, Gio only recently returned to training with Borussia Dortmund following an injury, so the reunion may have to wait until October’s big games against Germany in Hartford, Connecticut and against Ghana in Nashville.
Before that call takes place, Berhalter said he plans to meet Reyna once that decision is made.
It’s time to see if bringing Berhalter back is really worth it – and if it’s possible for the two to ever reconcile again.