“Where In The World Is Gio Reyna?” seems to have a solution, as reviews this morning say that he’s in England to wrap up a mortgage cope with Nottingham Forest. You realize if you get the “Here We Go!” from Fab that it’s official.
The one factor that USMNT followers will care about is that Reyna lastly will get on the sphere repeatedly and that he achieve this with out some physique half falling off of him once more after 10 minutes. The second half we will’t know till he will get on the market. The primary half? Hardly a assure, but it surely appears to be like good.
Supervisor Nuno Espirito Santo has usually deployed Forest in a 4-2-3-1, and whereas Morgan Gibbs-White has just about made the No. 10 spot in that set-up his personal, the 2 vast attacking spots have been in flux. Tuesday towards Arsenal, Neco Williams, who’s a fullback actually, performed on the suitable and Nicolás Dominguez, who in all probability is a defensive midfielder, was enjoying on the left. Anthony Elanga and Callum Hudson-Odoi have additionally rotated into these spots, with not one of the 4 actually grabbing a beginning spot with each palms. There’s alternative there if Reyna can show worthy of it.
However that doesn’t imply there aren’t considerations. One, there are at all times considerations in terms of Santo and Reyna’s agent Jorge Mendes, as the previous is seen as one thing of a safehouse for the latter’s purchasers. When Espirito Santo was the supervisor of Wolves, Mendes was mainly seen because the group’s technical director, given the variety of purchasers at Molineux on the time. However Reyna can simply outplay that, even when Santo is simply doing his agent a strong.
The larger concern is that Reyna is becoming a member of a group that’s already in a relegation struggle, as Forest are solely two factors forward of Everton in 18th (I take no additional pleasure in writing that, I guarantee you). Additionally they have an FFP cost hanging over their heads from the Premier League which may see a points-deduction penalty someday within the subsequent couple months that can definitely sentence them to a return to the Championship.
Which implies, first off, that the group and supervisor don’t actually have time to attend round for Reyna to stand up to hurry together with his teammates and the Premier League. Whereas the Bundesliga options fairly open play as properly, it isn’t on the tempo or the physicality of the Premier League. Reyna has already seen former Dortmund teammates Christian Pulisic and Jadon Sancho spend a variety of time battling both or each. Forest want factors now, and if Reyna doesn’t seem like he’ll assist present them fairly sharpish, he’ll be out of the lineup. And he’ll be attempting to do this off the again of barely enjoying for Dortmund this season. He’ll want time he simply may not need to settle.
Second, Reyna shall be becoming a member of a mode of group he doesn’t have a lot familiarity with. As a result of Forest aren’t going to have the ball a lot. They at present rank seventeenth in possession, and that’s not going to alter. Reyna may flourish within the open areas of the counterattacks that Forest have used efficiently at instances this season, however there aren’t that lots of them. No Dortmund facet he’s ever performed for has averaged lower than half of the possession in a season, and Forest are at present at 39.4 %.
Which implies Reyna shall be doing a good quantity of operating with out the ball, not thought-about his energy. And the listing of upcoming opponents for Forest received’t make for appetizing studying: Bournemouth, Newcastle, West Ham, Aston Villa and Liverpool. 4 of these groups are in all probability going to dominate the ball. Can Reyna be merely a counter-attacking participant?
Well being can also be at all times a priority. Reyna hasn’t been something greater than an affect sub the previous three seasons, and Forest may not view him as far more than that, a minimum of to start out. He couldn’t keep upright in Germany, however he’s going to take action within the Premier League the place you could be positive somebody goes to kick him into the fifth row in one among his first video games?
Reyna’s deal is fascinating in that there isn’t any possibility to purchase with this mortgage, and his contract with Dortmund has been prolonged one other yr to 2026. That’s in all probability simply to make his sale worth increased ought to he succeed with Forest.
There’s definitely threat right here, however Reyna must get on the sphere to start out justifying the noise round him. There’s alternative at Forest for him, but it surely comes within the kind and process that he’s by no means cope with earlier than. He can ask his American teammates Tyler Adams and Brenden Aaronson what being in a relegation battle within the Premier League is like. In all probability received’t get nice solutions.
