USMNT
Giovanni Reyna was named after Rangers' current boss
Prior to the UEFA Europa League between Rangers and Borussia Dortmund, the manager of the Scottish side revealed an anecdote of the USMNT ace.
Borussia Dortmund and Rangers will face each other in European competition for the first time since the 1999/2000 UEFA Cup last 32. The Bundesliga side was able to advance via penalties after a 2-2 draw on aggregate and Giovanni Van Bronckhorst played in both of those legs alongside Claudio Reyna - father of Giovanni who currently plays for the Bundesliga side.
Van Bronckhorst has a special relationship with Gio Reyna
This time they will face-off in the UEFA Europa League in a two legged series that starts on Thursday at Signal Iduna Park and Giovanni Van Bronckhorst, who is the head coach of Rangers, said that he is eager to play against the son of his close friend. The Dutch manager also revealed that Claudio Reyna named his son after him.
"I played with his father Claudio and I have been good friends with the whole family actually for many years. Gio I know from the day he was born so I have a special relationship with him as a friend but also as a player,” said Rangers boss.
"He came to Holland to train with our youth academy at Feyenoord so he was in our house and we were trying to help him to be the player that he is now. We visited him 18 months ago to watch one of his Dortmund games.
"We have always kept in contact and seen each other at least once a year. It is a special bond I have with the Reyna family and it will be special for both of us to play against each other. Hopefully it is a good game. The competitors that we are, we both want to win. It will be a very special moment."