

A Personal Tribute to Claudio Reyna
By: Dave Martinez | July 16th, 2008
There was a Claudio Reyna before the Red Bulls - and that is the Reyna that I and the rest of the world will remember forever. Feel how you may, but no one can take away the accomplishments of Captain America.
He was a pioneer for United States soccer. Following the “Golden Era” of American Soccer from 1990-1995, Reyna was one of the first youngsters to emerge as a steady bridge from the old guard to the new. As a matter of fact, he was groomed to surplant Tab Ramos (Metro Legend) as the midfield general. And did he ever.
He was a member of four World Cup teams, from 1994 - 2006. He was part of two Olympic teams, in 1992 and 1996. He also became the first American to Captain a major foreign team while playing in the Bundesliga (Wolfsburg, on loan from Bayern Leverkusen). Afterwards, he went on to Captain three other name sides - Glasgow Rangers, Sunderland and Manchester City. Not an easy accomplishment. Especially when your the first.
He was the first American to achieve first team status in the 2002 World Cup All Tournament Team. His play quickly made him a beloved figure throughout Europe - especially in the English and Scottish circles. This opened the doors of the European market to American field players, where traditionally, goalkeepers were considered America’s only valuable or risk worthy export.
After his international retirement in 2006, the idea of giving back to his country and playing at home in a MLS seemed the logical thing to do - especially since he is a Jersey boy, and his life time Coach, Bruce Arena, was manning the ship of the New York side. But we all know how that tale has turned out. Turf became an issue. Tempers between coach and player flared. Health was a constant concern. Many have even said that Reyna hasn’t been the same since that huge Dane Richards collision last season. Whatever the case, his time as the Red Bulls marquee Designated Player have been marred by injuries, missed games and crushed expectations.
Sadly, Reyna leaves the Red Bulls experiment much like Youri Djorkaeff before him - limping, and in a cloud of controversy. Red Bull fans have spent the better part of 16 months lamenting the fact the coveted DP slot had been filled by a walking injury case.
Nevertheless, though Bulls fans still feel the sting of this signing (27 appearances, 0 goals), and its failed potential, Reyna’s legacy as “Captain America” will subdue any negativity related to his New York stay. He was a trailblazer for a country shunned by the footballing community. He paved the way for future Americans with his talent and exploits. He will live on as one of the greatest, most valuable players in the history of American Soccer. You can count on that.
Reyna is holding a press conference today at 2pm to make all of this official. I will get you the details as I find them.
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It really pained me to see Reyna struggled in his years at RBNY. I feel inside, he came back to the US to purport the MLS game to another level, and kept trying to play through the pain and injury to keep this goal in mind. I feel Reyna should now take the time to rest and heal and go into a strong administrative role whether in the MLS or US Soccer Federation.
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Absolutely - maybe even as a Player Union Head along with Eddie Pope. He holds alot of clout in the community - enough even to silence critics in the media for 99% of the time he was here. Hell, maybe a run at coaching. Who knows.
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retirement is the hardest thing for a pro athlete to recognize the time for and also one of the most important decisions he or she can make.
its always sad to see a shell of a former athlete cling to their career.
Renya was a great footballer but his time came and went before he joined us in NY
Ill never really consider him a red bull or NY player. He’ll always be captain america but his time with this team is best forgotten
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nlr - I couldn’t have said it better.
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Great tribute. With any luck the last couple years will be but a mere footnote in people’s recollection of a great and important career.
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For those wondering about my Chivas hearsay - Ives addresses it today -
“Question: How long do the Red Bulls have the Chivas USA designated player slot for.
Answer: The popular answer is until the end of the 2009 season. I am working to get the definitive answer on that. I think it was until 2009 because after 2009 is when MLS was supposed to re-evaluate the designated player mechanism (which also means time to consider scrapping it (no way) or giving teams a second slot (possible).”
Ives is the man.
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Once again, eloquently and accurately written, you have been on the money all week! Very nice response posts, as well. I was so sad for him to go out this way, but then I read of that beautiful Italian 23 yr old player, whom had just broken into Serie A, killed on his way to his medical exam, and I see how lucky Claudio has been, to get to display his talent, on the world stage. We thank you and you make us proud Americans! He needs to gather himself, and contribute in another great way.
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Good point Martha. And thank you for feeding my ego a little bit! lol.
Reyna even has clout overseas as a very respected product. If he were to be successful as a youth developer (which seems to be his future with RBNY) or a coach at the MLS level, I would feel Reyna would draw more consideration than Arena for coaching vacancies. Speaks volumes on his body of work.
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