Why is Gio Reyna not playing for Borussia Dortmund against Club Brugge in the Champions League?

Borussia Dortmund and USMNT winger Giovanni Reyna is set for a period on the sidelines after suffering an injury on international duty, his club manager confirmed last week.

The 21-year-old returned home early from the recent international break having suffered the injury in a training session, ultimately missing out on a 2-1 loss to Canada and a 1-1 draw with New Zealand in a pair of friendlies held stateside.

What injury does Gio Reyna have?

The player has suffered a groin strain that will keep him out for, according to Nuri Sahin, the manager of Borussia Dortmund, “a few weeks”.

Reyna returned to Germany and missed out on Dortmund’s 4-2 Bundesliga win over 1. FC Heidenheim which saw them move up to second in the standings. Sahin has been coy on publicly speculating upon a potential return date for Reyna, with “a few weeks” the only information regarding his comeback given to the media.

Dortmund, after their Champions League tie, go up against VfB Stuttgart, who finished second in the division last year and went toe-to-toe with Real Madrid in the Champions League opener last night. Although the Spanish side eventually won 3-1 thanks to goals from Mbappé, Rüdiger and Endrick, the Germans put them under significant pressure throughout and the scoreline could easily have gone the other way had they been more precise in front of goal. The test that BVB will face is made even greater now Reyna is confirmed as out of action.

Last season under Edin Terzic, Reyna found playing time hard to come by, and was sent out on loan to Premier League side Nottingham Forest. While in the Midlands Reyna played 10 times and got just one assist, scoring zero goals. Dortmund, meanwhile, made it to the final of the Champions League and lost to Real Madrid at Wembley. For the Black & Yellow, Reyna has played a total of 122 times, scoring and assisting 17 times each.