Among soccer greats, there is one common factor, most of them solidified their legacy in Europe, with rare exceptions like Neymar Jr. who earned a Ballon d’Or nomination while playing for Santos FC in South America, before moving abroad. When MLS legend Landon Donovan criticized Giovanni Reyna’s choice to still play in Europe, ex-USMNT star Eric Wynalda was quick to defend the Borussia Dortmund player. 

Gio Reyna who made his move from New York City FC to Borussia Dortmund has struggled to find regular playing time thanks to a string of injuries and falling out of favour with coaches. Landon Donovan believes that if he were to never leave New York City FC, Reyna could have played over 300 games in the MLS. The former LA Galaxy player went on to label Reyna a ‘soccer practicer’ on his ‘Unfilted Soccer podcast’ with co-host Tim Howard. 

Wynalda who was among the first Americans to play professionally in Europe called out Donovan for his views. “Great if you would stop talking about things you don’t understand, Small fish in the ocean aren’t interested in advice from small fish in a small pond. They are trying to navigate this thing called ambition” said Wynalda in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter). 

The National Soccer Hall of Fame inductee spent 4 years of his career in Germany where he managed to bag 25 goals for FC Saarbrücken and VfL Bochum in the 90s, before returning to the MLS. On the other hand, Donovan found his success playing domestically for LA Galaxy where he scored 112 goals in 247 appearances.

However, loan spells to Bayern Munich and Everton saw the American just make 33 appearances during the three years in Europe and score twice. And let’s not forget, that Donovan began his career in Bayer Leverkusen, though he spent the majority of the 6 years on loan to San Jose Earthquakes. But this begs a different question of whether the domestic league is simply not good enough. 

Is Europe the way for USMNT?

First of all, the MLS Best XI for the 2024 season was announced which did not feature a single American. And looking at Mauricio Pochettino’s USMNT current squad, only 4 players from the MLS featured, with Tim Ream being the only one getting some game time. That too, because Chris Richards of Crystal Palace was injured. 

Looking at the rest of the squad, key players like Christian Pulisic, Ricardo Pepi, Antonee Robinson, and Timothy Weah all play across various clubs in Europe. The Argentine coach, publicly announced that their players would be getting game time if they performed well at club levels, regardless of the league they play in. 

With many wanting to see Giovanni Reyna wear the Red, Blue, and White when the 2026 World Cup arrives, one wonders if he’d be part of the roster, had he been a regular at MLS. With around 2 years for the Stars and Stripes, Pochettino will have an excellent squad of players to pick from. Hopefully, the USMNT makes it past the cursed Round of 16 this time around.