As Borussia Dortmund prepared for their second Club World Cup group stage clash at TQL Stadium, Gio Reyna wasn’t on the field. He wasn’t even on the bench. He was in the locker room with the rest of the unused players and this image was shared on social media just a few minutes after the whistle and it went like a bushfire on both sides of the Atlantic. The scene was too vivid to be disregarded by a once-promised American prospect.
Reyna is not just stalling in her career but he is on a very dangerous path of becoming irrelevant. And with transfer talks now in full swing, the question is no longer if he should move, but where. He has an option to earn up to a potential 6.95 million to move to Serie A team Parma or even links to MLS with LAFC and NYCFC and the choice he makes can be the beginning of the next ten years of his career. In my opinion, the answer is obvious: Major League Soccer is the only place where Reyna can restore his game and image.
The Decline of a Prodigy
Reyna’s fall didn’t start this week or this summer. It got started around the period of the 2022 World Cup, where he only featured 52 minutes of the game, with rumors of him having a bad training attitude and there being a vote to see whether he should even be retained by the team. The controversy was further intensified with the family drama that ensued. At his club team, Reyna is yet to live up to the hype but he has been solid with the U.S. national team. One of them was the Golden Ball of the Nations League 2024.
At Dortmund, Reyna played just 341 minutes of football in the 2024-25 season. His loan to Nottingham Forest produced just one goal contribution in 10 games. Since 2021, he’s battled at least eight muscular injuries, missing over 80 matches, including recurring right hamstring issues. At the Club World Cup, Reyna ranked as the 19th-fastest player on the team, behind goalkeeper Gregor Kobel.
Why Does MLS Make More Sense Than Serie A?
The offer from Parma of 6 million euros, including bonuses, is a good offer to Reyna due to his few minutes of play and injury. The three-year contract with a release clause of 25 million euros is evidence that the club is ready to support his potential in the future. But Serie A, and particularly a lower-table team like Parma (16th in 2024–25), may not offer Reyna the patient, flexible environment he needs.
Under new coach Carlos Cuesta, Parma is entering a high-pressure rebuild. Reyna, with fitness and defensive issues (he is in the 1st percentile in terms of interceptions, 15th in tackles and 32nd in blocks among attacking mids globally, by FBRef), might struggle in a physically demanding league like Serie A.
By comparison, MLS gives him room to operate. The league often puts a premium on offensive upside, even if it comes without much defensive effort. A good example is Riqui Puig; he has registered excellent goal and assist statistics and he has not spent as much time preventing attacks. MLS has yet to fall out of love with the creative No. 10 talents and that is exactly what Reyna is.
In case he transfers to a team like NYCFC or LAFC, Reyna might directly enter the starting eleven, become the go-to star, and, last but not least, play regular minutes. The only thing he would need to continue doing is to sharpen what he does best: vision, creativity and flawless technique.
A wonderful opportunity for the club and country
The U.S. men’s national team doesn’t have a single American playing in MLS who qualifies as a marquee global draw. MLS, for all its progress, still lacks a homegrown star who headlines every week and brings fans to stadiums on name alone. Reyna, at 22, still has the talent to be that player.
From the league’s perspective, bringing Reyna home could help balance the one-way export pipeline. From Reyna’s perspective, MLS offers more than minutes—it offers relevance, responsibility, and rehabilitation. It offers a fresh start with meaning.
Final Words
It seems that Serie A will be a challenging match and Parma does have a strategy. Nevertheless, Gio Reyna, the midfielder of New York City FC, does not require another tactical slog or an uphill battle to remain relevant in Europe. Minutes, confidence, and a stage that will allow Reyna to be what he is—an intuitive maker, a peculiar visionary with a sense of style—are all Reyna requires.
MLS provides him with that. Not a step down, but an opportunity to take a step forward. Home injured, fit, center-stage and a reminder as to why he was the most exciting American talent since Pulisic. And we can be too forgetful of the ripple effect. MLS requires a homegrown, transcendent American-made star. Reyna has the potential to become that face, should he rise to the task.
Vibhor Gautam 
Sagnik Banerjee
[…] is his creativity that impresses people. Reyna excels at locating teammates with precision passes and creating space. Although he does not get a […]