DUESSELDORF, Germany (AP) — How far can friendship go in the World Cup? Gio Reyna And with Joe Scully on the team, the U.S. might find out soon.
Reyna and Scully are old friends who have enjoyed playing together at German club Borussia Mönchengladbach this season, and both Created a directory for the United States for world cup this week.
“The chemistry is there, and it’s always been there,” Reyna said in a joint media appearance with Scully earlier this month.
“We’re already close, but I feel like we’ve gotten even closer. It felt impossible, but it’s been a good year together,” Reyna said.
He further added that his wife is friends with Scully’s fiance and even their dog is friends.
Reina told the Associated Press Last year, his friend was the “best protagonist” in his decision to join Gladbach this season to revive his career after injuries and a controversial appearance at the 2022 World Cup.
Scully insists that their bond benefits the field.
“I think we’re definitely enjoying every day, whether it’s on the practice field, in the locker room, in the car every day, because we know it’s not going to last forever,” Scully said. “I think we understand each other better on the field. We want to play together more than ever. Whenever we play together, something good usually happens.”
U.S. men’s national soccer team defender Joe Scully appears during the team roster presentation in New York City ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Eduardo Muñoz Alvarez)
The 23-year-olds played together as youth players at New York City FC a decade ago and have both made a name for themselves in Europe, but their on-field similarities end there.
Scully is a versatile and reliable defender who rarely misses a game. Reyna is a creative and unpredictable attacking midfielder who can make a sudden impact on the match, but repeatedly absent He has been plagued by fitness and injury issues for much of the last few seasons.
It will be Scali and Reina’s second World Cup appearance, following a dispute that overshadowed Reina’s time with the team in Qatar in 2022.
Reyna only played off the bench twice, and then-U.S. manager Gregg Berhalter said after the tournament that an unnamed player (later identified as Reyna) I almost got sent home It’s because I didn’t put enough effort into my training.
Reyna’s parents, Claudio and Daniel Reyna, both former national team players, lobbied the U.S. Soccer Federation to increase Gio’s playing time and contacted the USSF about a 30-year-old domestic violence allegation involving a woman who was a former college roommate of Berhalter and Daniel, who later became his wife.
Reyna told The Associated Press last year that he intended to deal with the 2022 incident differently “a certain way” and that while his actions stemmed from frustration, the controversy was “completely” not his or his family’s fault.
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AP World Cup: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-world-cup
