Tracking data from Sportlogiq reveals that Gio Reyna\'s physical output has declined significantly amid recurring injuries, potentially explaining the 22-year-old Borussia Dortmund midfielder\'s limited playing time in recent seasons.
Since what appeared to be a breakout 2020-21 campaign when he scored four goals with five assists across 23 Bundesliga starts, Reyna has made just 14 starts over the past four seasons. He\'s accumulated only 4,000 league minutes for Dortmund during this period, providing a limited statistical sample for analysis.
The most revealing dataset about Reyna may be his injury history. According to Transfermarkt, the American international has missed 498 days due to 17 different injuries ranging from colds and infections to strains and fibula fissures.
Movement data tracked by Sportlogiq, a company that derives player positioning from television broadcasts, indicates Reyna\'s physical metrics have deteriorated substantially compared to positional peers.
The average Bundesliga attacking midfielder reaches a maximum speed of approximately 30.8 kilometers per hour and performs 18.5 sprints (runs at 25+ km/h) per 90 minutes. Reyna\'s maximum speed this season is just 27.7 km/h with only 11 sprints per 90 minutes.
These figures rank last among all qualified Bundesliga attacking midfielders for maximum speed and near the bottom for sprint frequency. Even when compared to his Dortmund teammates, Reyna has the slowest maximum speed and fewest sprints, falling below 33-year-old midfielder Pascal Gross.
The decline appears progressive, with Reyna\'s maximum speed dropping from 30.8 km/h in 2021-22 to 30.1 km/h in 2022-23, then 28.3 km/h last season, before reaching its current low. The significant speed reduction coincided with a broken leg suffered during a Nations League match against Canada in summer 2023.
A subsequent groin injury during USMNT training last September sidelined him for another 77 days, causing him to miss 19 combined matches for club and country.
USMNT manager Mauricio Pochettino seemed to acknowledge these physical limitations after the Nations League final, stating that Reyna wasn\'t \"ready to play in the way that we expect from him\" following the 1-0 loss to Panama.
For context, Bayer Leverkusen\'s 21-year-old star Florian Wirtz has reached a maximum speed of 32.6 km/h this season while averaging 25.6 sprints per 90 minutes, demonstrating the performance level expected from elite young attacking midfielders.
Analysis suggests Reyna needs significant changes to revive his career trajectory - whether through extended recovery time, new approaches to movement and physical care, or potentially a move to a less physically demanding league.
\"It\'s not only that he\'s not playing much anymore. He\'s not sprinting much anymore, either,\" the analysis concludes, highlighting the connection between Reyna\'s recurring injuries and diminished athletic performance.