From bench-warming to USMNT camp, Gio Reyna races against time to secure a World Cup roster spot

training camp this week, all but two have been playing regularly for European and Major League Soccer clubs. Alex Freeman’s scant minutes come with an asterisk. Gio Reyna’s bench-warming does not.

Their presence here is proof that consistent minutes in day jobs are not a firm requisite for World Cup roster consideration. But as Mauricio Pochettino assesses his roster pool ahead of the May 26 announcement, a player’s weekly work is hard to ignore. Once full of promise in Germany, Reyna has failed to break through in his first season at Mönchengladbach after fading from prominence at Borussia Dortmund.

And yet, despite two appearances totaling 28 minutes in 2026, four starts since the August opener and fewer than 750 minutes over two seasons, the 23-year-old midfielder remains in the World Cup mix. Draft your Yahoo Fantasy Baseball team for the 2026 MLB Season In summoning Reyna for a camp featuring friendlies in Atlanta against Belgium on Saturday and Portugal on Tuesday, Pochettino called him a “very special player” who, even if not playing for his club, “can be very useful for us” and who was “fantastic” for the U. S.

in November. On Thursday, in his first public comments since reporting to camp, Reyna said, “It's always easier when you're playing week in and week out. My case is not like that.