I guess if you can’t get that Champions League football you want, then you just take that phat paycheck. We’ll see how long he lasts there
This Reyna/Berhalter thing gets nuttier by the day. So Reyna’s parents went to the USSF to tell them about an incident Berhalter had with his then girlfriend, now wife of however many years from the early 90s to try and get back at him because Gio wasn’t getting to play?
If the USSF had any balls, they’d tell the Reyna family to get lost forever. Go play for another country. They’re the worst of the worst soccer parents. All of us who coached dealt with at least one pair of them. Send a message.
I don’t really believe in holding it against the kids in these cases. I played youth sports with a few really nice kids with just real shitty parents and it was awful enough for those kids to try and deal with their parents themselves, let alone when other people held their parents’ actions/words against them
I haven’t watched it super closely, but as garbage as I think it is to go after the coach after your kid doesn’t play, aren’t the allegations of the incident true?
He’s married to her. He was 19. He’s now 49. The only person who didn’t forgive him for it is the mother of the kid who didn’t play enough for her liking at the World Cup and she pulls it out during the tournament to try to get him fired.
Normally, I’d say don’t hold it against the kid (he’s 20 though… an adult), but the whole situation is now ripe for continued abuse by these parents who also played for the US National Team. She poisoned the well for her son IMO.
Unless something else comes out, it didn’t sound like Berhalter had it in for Gio either, it sounded like the whole team was pissed with his conduct, but it was easier to go after the coach.
Like @DaveLong says, the incident in question happened in 1991, and the other person that was involved has now been his wife for over 20 years. Unless there is a lot more history to come out about his treatment of her from 1991 - 1999, and then as his wife it sounds like a stupid, drunk mistake and the only person that should have an issue with it apparently got past it, married him, and raised a family with him.
The Reyna’s bringing it up because poor Gio didn’t get his playing time is obviously trying to exact revenge on Berhalter. If Gio’s mom pops up with a tape of Berhalter’s wife telling her of all sorts of abuse then I guess we will have a different story. Unless more comes out though about Berhalter, it just sounds like petty bullshit from the Reyna family.
So the 20 year old should be blacklisted because his parents said something crazy petty but truthful but everyone should blackhole a shitty thing that the coach did himself because he was only 19?
I agree it’s petty helicopter parent bullshit, but why is it the kid’s fault?
You’re ignoring the fact the player showed up not prepared to play. He also apparently had attitude about it when called on the carpet about it by the rest of the team and the coach. Berhalter was doing the job he was paid to do.
Are we really going to litigate an event that happened 30 years ago between two people who have been married for years with three children because some crazy soccer parent brought it up because her son wasn’t getting enough playing time?
The woman and kid you seem to want to defend absolutely have a hand in the US squad not having a fit and ready Gio Reyna on the field AND provided a distraction during the tournament for your National Team. Is that who we should be rewarding here?
I keep specifically not defending the parents. They seem pretty awful.
I just don’t see how that is the kid’s fault. I’m not saying he deserves a free pass for his conduct. Obviously his conduct should be held against him. But I still don’t see why his parents should be.
I with you. Gio is young and made a mistake, sounds like he owned up to it, made amends and improved because of it. Much like Berhalter 30 years ago.
This episode coupled with the apparent dearth of quality domestic managers is a great reason why the USSF needs to look outside their incestuous ecosystem of upper-middleclass twits for the next USMNT manager. Doing so worked wonders for the much more accomplished women’s team (granted that Ellis was part of said ecosystem when she was hired; basically, I’m saying don’t hire an American) and even Klinsmann—a pretty mid manager by international standards—got some good results for them before the wheels came off.
RIP Vialli. Him and Zola are the only reason I watched Chelsea back in the late 90s.
This is sad. Way too soon for him. He seemed like such a gentleman on the pitch.
USSF should hire Pep when he’s done with City. He said he wants to coach Internationally and the youth he’d get here would be able to be molded into his expectations. It won’t happen, but it should.
Around 20 years ago my wife used to work in a bookshop on the King’s Road in Chelsea in London. They sold mostly second-hand books. They had a bunch of Italian literature that was being sold for the humble price of 1 pound each. One day an Italian man came into the store and asked about the books, when provided with the price he said that he only wanted to pay 50 pence each. My wife said “No, they are a pound each”. He replied “Don’t you know who I am?”, she said “No”, he responded “I am Gianluca Vialli, the manager of Chelsea.” My wife responded, “they are still one pound each”. I don’t think he bought them in the end.
RIP Gianluca you tight bastard ;)
Considering they’re hosting the next World Cup and have a promising young roster, the USSF might want to make a big hire, but it seems so counter to their MO the last few decades I kinda doubt it too. I suppose the end of Klinsmann’s tenure might have left a bad taste in their mouth regarding big hires.
But reading things like ‘father of upset player complains to general manager / former teammate Brian McBride about their former teammate Berhalter who is the current head coach while player’s mother blackmails said head coach with info regarding the mother’s former roommate who happens to be the head coach’s wife’ makes me think the net should be cast much wider. I get that prior relationships are common in any industry and helicopter parents are gonna helicopter no matter what, but maybe the person charged with determining lineups and playing time should be further removed from those decades old rivalries.
It feels like about half of MLS teams have foreign managers as it is. I don’t get why the USMNT having one should be so rare of late.
I’m a big City fan and hear Pep speak a lot because of it. I think he would legitimately consider the job for the reasons you state, ane mainly that the WC will be in North America in 2026. He may see it as exactly the challenge he needs at this point in his career. Succeeding would be the ultimate capper on his career path.
It’s crazy talk tho. It’ll never happen. He’ll be in Spain.
Pressing to doubt my doubt:
Gareth Bale makes official what has seemed fairly inevitable for the past year or so.