- USMNT has suffered rough few months
- Pulisic called Reyna-Berhalter saga "childish"
- Twellman says trouble is nothing new
WHAT HAPPENED? The past two months have been damaging for American soccer, with the Reyna family involved in meddling with U.S. Soccer on behalf of their son and throwing former head coach Gregg Berhalter under the bus in the process. Berhalter left his post as head coach after the 2022 World Cup but could yet return following the results of an internal investigation.
While speaking to ESPN, Pulisic labelled the situation as "childish". But Twellman was quick to point out that bad dressing room behavior has been commonplace for some time, although agreed that the Reynas' actions were "inexplicable".
WHAT THEY SAID: "If we think that this is the first time a player has pouted and acted like a child when it came to “playing time”, then you haven’t paid attention or just woke up," the ex-USMNT forward tweeted. "As for the parents’ involvement, yes….what the Reyna’s did is inexplicable and hard to fathom at this level."
THE BIGGER PICTURE: While Claudio Reyna stepped down from his role as sporting director of Austin FC following the debacle, his reputation has also been scarred. Revelations of countless pressuring on USMNT coaches to play son Gio has turned one of the Stars and Stripes' most beloved icons into a ridiculed villain.
For Pulisic and Reyna, both were welcomed back to USMNT duty on Wednesday as they work their way back into the fray after a largely underwhelming season at club level. Interim manager Anthony Hudson will be boosted by the return to fitness of the Chelsea man in recent weeks, as he has come off the bench for Graham Potter in the Blues' last two outings.
IN TWO PHOTOS:
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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR THE USMNT? Pulisic, Reyna and Co. will take part in two Nations League matches next week, which come against Grenada and El Salvador on March 25 and 28, respectively.
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