So you just listed 4 World Cups, he missed the first at age 21 due to injury(may not have played anyways?). Then he missed one game in 2002 and played in the next 4 in a row. He played in all 3 games of 2006, and got injured in the 3rd.Aston94 said:Just a quick look at his wikipedia page just for reference (have bolded references to injuries):PatAg said:Is that true, that doesn't really jive with what I remember without going to look it up.Aston94 said:
When Gio's dad Claudio was a big part of the USMNT that was always the big issue with him. He was great on the field, was always the driver of the team, but he just couldn't seem to stay healthy.
I hope Gio didn't inherit the perpetual injury bug from his dad.
John O'Brien is the one I really remember struggling with health, so maybe that overhsadowed it.
As a U.S. national player, Reyna got his first cap against Norway on January 15, 1994. He was a member of the team at the 1994 FIFA World Cup, but did not play due to injury. Reyna did play in the 1998, 2002 and 2006 FIFA World Cups.
In 2002, despite sitting out the opening 32 upset win over Portugal due to injury, he was a key contributor in the next three U.S. games a tie against South Korea, a loss to Poland, and a win over CONCACAF rival Mexico. In the quarterfinals, the U.S. lost to eventual runner-up Germany. He became only the third American ever (after Bert Patenaude and John Souza) named to the World Cup all-tournament team.
In 2006, Reyna again captained the U.S. at the World Cup in Germany. Trailing 10 in the opener against the Czech Republic, Reyna fired a 30-yard shot that bounced off the post, the best American chance in the game. In the final group game against Ghana, Reyna suffered a sprained medial collateral ligament when he lost the ball to Haminu Draman who then dribbled in alone and scored Ghana's first goal.
On June 23, 2006, the day after the U.S. was eliminated from the World Cup, Reyna announced his retirement from the national team. He ended his international career with 111 caps and eight goals.
I loved Reyna, he was my favorite player for the USMNT. But yes, he was injured quite often. John O'Brien was a very tragic tale, he was even worse than Reyna as far as always being hurt.
We'd have to see his availability for WCQ and his club to really answer, and that would be very unlikely to be available.
I'll take your word for it, but I wouldnt consider missing 1 game and getting injured in another over the course of 3 world cups quite often injured.