Gio Rina’s parents reported about Greg Berhalter’s domestic dispute

Claudio Reina And the Greg Berhalter They were once best friends. High school classmates, they played together in the World Cup twice. Rena was the best man at Berhalter’s wedding and their wives were roommates and teammates on the North Carolina football team.

But now, a personal feud between the two families threatens both the men’s careers and has thrown American football into turmoil just as The program is entering a new World Cup cycle The tournament, which will be held in the United States for the second time, will end.

The strange series began shortly after the United States was eliminated from last year’s World Cup in the round of 16. Gio, the son of Claudio Reyna, was part of the US team, which was coached by Berhalter, but he played only 52 minutes off the bench. in four games. After returning from the tournament, Berhalter spoke at a summit on ethical leadership where he referred to some of the internal issues in Qatar involving an unnamed player. Berhalter said that the player did not show enough intensity in the exercises, and he was almost sent home.

that The player was later identified as Gio Reina And his parents, by their own admission, said they felt betrayed by Berhalter. So they approached American football with a previously unreported story of a physical altercation between the coach and the woman he would later marry.

In a statement sent to several media outlets, Rina’s mother, 49, said she contacted Ernie Stewart, athletic director of American football and a former teammate of Claudio Rina and Berhalter, after the coach’s remarks were reported at the summit.

“I called Ernie Stewart right after word got out that Greg had made negative remarks about my son Geo at a leadership conference,” said Danielle Reyna, who made six caps for the women’s national team under her maiden name Egan. “I have known Ernie for years and consider him a close friend. I wanted to tell him that I felt so angry and devastated that Geo had been put in such a terrible situation.”

But she said that telling Stewart of an incident 31 years old that was not reported to the authorities and that did not prevent Rosalind Santana from marrying Berhalter after eight years, was not blackmail.

“I want to be very clear that I have not asked for Greg to be fired, have not made any threats, and know nothing of any extortion attempts,” she said.

What she hoped to achieve, she said, was to stop Berhalter from talking about her son, a player on a team he coaches. But instead of calling someone she’d known for over three decades and asking him to lighten up, she went to his boss, knowing that Berhalter’s contract with US Soccer would expire in three weeks and that he was hoping to be asked back for another World Cup tournament.

Berhalter, 49, who was twice named to the World Cup as a player, took over the national team in December 2018. In his four years in charge, he overhauled the roster, tested 88 players and led the United States to the World Cup after an eight-year layoff. . He also won the Gold Cup and Nations League championships, going 37-11-12.

This is the best winning percentage of any US men’s national team coach in more than two games.

Now his future must await the findings of a report from the Atlanta-based law firm Alston & Bird LLP, which has been appointed by US Soccer to conduct an independent investigation into the original incident as well as “potentially inappropriate behavior toward several members of our team,” the union said in a statement.

Berhalter for sure The call was considered an attempt to extortsaying on social media on Tuesday that an unnamed person had contacted US Soccer to say “they have information about me that would ‘bring me down’ — an apparent attempt to take advantage of something very personal long ago to end my relationship with US Soccer.”

Berhalter went on to admit that he had a physical altercation with Santana, and kicked her in the legs outside the bar during an altercation. He said he sought counseling in the aftermath of the accident.

“There are no excuses for my actions that night; it was a shameful moment that I regret to this day,” Berhalter wrote.

Shameful too was Danielle Reyna’s actions, which forced the Burhalters to relive that moment – and perhaps explain it to their four children for the first time. The phone call also interrupted discussions within the NFL about Berhalter’s future with the team.

Claudio Reina released a statement supporting his wife’s actions.

“I, too, was upset by Greg’s comments about Geo after the US exit from the World Cup,” he said, “and also pleaded with Ernie Stewart…and asked him to block any further comments.” “While in Qatar, I shared my frustrations about my son’s World Cup experience with a number of close friends.”

But he apparently did not call Rhalter, one of his closest friends, to discuss the matter. Instead, he, too, has gotten around the coach’s back in an attempt to meddle in the dynamics of the U.S. locker room, something Reina, as a former captain of the national team, knows is wrong.

Renna, 49, who is currently the athletic director of MLS club Austin FC, will likely see revelations this week mar his career as well.

Then there’s Gio Reina, whose parents thought they were standing up for his best interests. At twenty years old, he is already in his fourth season with Borussia Dortmund. He is the youngest American to play in the Bundesliga and the youngest player to score an assist in a Champions League match. Berhalter called him up for the first time in the national team and his debut. His future is very bright.

But the coaches who now invite him to the national team will know that it can be fraught with unforeseen consequences.

In Qatar, Reyna said he was told his role with the team would be limited and he admitted it affected his performance and commitment in training. In the end, he apologized to his teammates and the coaching staff for the lack of effort. He also has to live with the fact that his family – like a pair of out-of-control AYSO parents, not former national team players – trolled around the coach to share a private personal incident three decades ago in an apparent attempt to. embarrasses Berhalter.

Unlike their son, the elder Renas never apologized for their actions.

It’s hard to see how any of this will end well – for Berhalters, Reinas or American football.

President of American Football Cindy Barlow Conn; JT Batson, Executive Director and Secretary General of the Federation; Stewart held a 35-minute conference call with more than 150 reporters on Wednesday, during which they promised transparency while deflecting even the slightest of questions.

“It’s not a fun period,” Stewart said.

Kuhn said she did not know how long the investigation would take and said everything would remain on hold until it was completed. Meanwhile, Anthony Hudson, who has coached national teams Bahrain and New Zealand, and in MLS with the Colorado Rapids, will manage the team during training camp this month in Southern California. Hudson will be joined by teammates PJ Callahan, assistant World Cup coach, and Mickey Vargas, coach of the US U-20 national team.

These guys will pick the bootcamp roster, which will likely be announced next week. Gio Reina, who is with his team in Germany, will not be called up.