Gio Reyna has finally broken his year-long goal drought, and the timing couldn't be more critical. The 23-year-old American attacking midfielder found the back of the net for Borussia Mönchengladbach in Saturday's 3-1 Bundesliga loss to Augsburg, scoring with a crisp first-time finish off a pass from Rocco Reitz. It was his first club goal since January 2025, when he was still with Borussia Dortmund.

"It's been a little while, but in the end, I'm just happy to score," Reyna told reporters on Tuesday. "It didn't matter too much in the end, but more than that, it was good to get a good chunk of minutes. I felt like I had a pretty good performance overall."

With the United States World Cup roster announcement looming on May 26, every moment on the pitch matters for Reyna. He's vying for a spot under new coach Mauricio Pochettino, and this goal is a timely reminder of his quality. Reyna has often been used off the bench in his first season at Gladbach and hasn't played a full 90-minute club league game in four years, but he has still been getting minutes for the U.S. under Pochettino.

The son of former U.S. captain Claudio Reyna—who led the team at the 2002 and 2006 World Cups—Gio knows what it means to represent his country on the biggest stage. "It would be an honor," he said of a potential call-up.

When asked if he felt he had done enough this season to earn a World Cup spot, Reyna chose his words carefully. "It's a hard question to answer. If I say no, I'm not backing myself. And if I say yes, it's the arrogant answer where I feel like I should be there." He added, "I love the staff. I love the players. I love the national team. Whatever happens, happens. I'm really hoping and wanting to be there to make an impact and achieve something great with the team, but the decision is out of my hands."

Reyna told the Associated Press last year that the World Cup was his long-term target after moving to Gladbach in search of more regular playing time. He was part of the 2022 World Cup squad but saw limited action amid a difficult relationship with then-coach Gregg Berhalter. Now, with a fresh start under Pochettino and a landmark goal to boost his confidence, Reyna is making his case loud and clear.