USA and Borussia Dortmund star Gio Reyna speaks to FIFA in exclusive interview about this summer’s Club World Cup | OneFootball

"I think playing on home soil with the national team or club is always super fun for me, and, yeah, I’m looking forward to bringing some of the guys and the club over to my area and showing them a few things and answering their questions about my country. Still, I think, yeah, I’m just excited to play a tournament in front of my home fans. "Gio Reyna

"I think just seeing these games live and being around the game in the country is going to be something that the US hasn’t really seen. The exposure of the sport in the next few years is really going to grow and grow and grow, and when you have teams like Dortmund and Bayern Münich and Real Madrid and Man City that are… all the best players in the world that are participating in these games, it sort of makes you want to check in and follow, and maybe, who knows? Game by game, we get a few more fans, and then all the promotions and all that stuff. Hopefully, we will see as many fans in the stadium as possible, and then, of course, next year with the [FIFA] World Cup, I think it will be pretty crazy, as an understatement. "Gio Reyna

"I think watching through the TV is so different than seeing it live, and to see someone you support so much and are passionate about watching it live is very much different than when you watch it on TV. It’s just a different feeling, a different energy that you get, and they are probably very desperate for this moment to see us live. For us now, it’s really just about performing well there and putting on a good show and good games and, yeah, really just putting on an enjoying and entertaining football for them to watch. "Gio Reyna

"The soccer culture is very much still growing in America, and there are a lot of kids who are really getting into the game and falling in love with teams over here. I know Dortmund has a big following back in America, also. So, yeah, I expect a lot of fans for us and for all the teams in the tournament that participate."Gio Reyna

"I think, obviously, two huge clubs in the world of football. Of course, in Brazil and in South America, Fluminense has a great history, and I know there are a lot of Brazilians and Fluminense fans in the state. So, yeah, I expect a lot of fans, obviously, good football from both teams, as they have a lot of quality too, and, yeah, we are going to have to be ready to go if we want to beat any team in this tournament. It’s not a walk in the park against these teams; as anyone who makes it, you have to qualify, and they deservedly did. So, it shows what they did in the past was successful. And, yeah, hopefully, we get the win, but we expect a lot of energy and, of course, from the fans, a lot of support. "Gio Reyna

"I think our goal going into this tournament is, for sure, trying to win it. We went to the [UEFA] Champions League final last year, and we’ve made good runs in the Champions League in the past and, for me, the Champions League is the most difficult competition in the world, and if we see ourselves doing well there consistency — consistently, sorry— surely, we can put on a good performance at this tournament, the [FIFA] Club World Cup, and, yeah, make a deep run. So, of course, it’s difficult to win these kinds of tournaments with the quality in them, but, yeah, for us, a deep run is, for sure, what we want to make, and then, once you get into the final games, anything can happen, and we would like to win, of course. "Gio Reyna

"It is like we said; we are still a minority of US players in Europe. There are not as many as, say, the bigger European countries, but we’re growing, and a lot of us are doing very well [at] big clubs. So, I think whenever there is an American playing in the Champions League, or the top five leagues, or even any other, really, league in Europe, it’s always [important] to support each other and bring each other up because our end-goal is really to really keep on growing the sport in America, and, yeah. I know Juventus is in it, and they have a few American guys, and I always root for them whenever I watch them play live, too. So, I am sure the fans will really just be wanting to see American players live and hoping they do well just to continue to grow the sport, really. "Gio Reyna

"Yeah. I mean, for me, I just know that Dortmund is a club that is worldwide supported and one of the biggest in the world, so it is… Also, in the States, I know the support that I get every week and the club gets every week is really special. I did not know this fact about Cincinnati, but I think throughout the whole tournament, we are going to see traveling fans and real Dortmund supporters from all around the world, from Germany, from the USA, who really just love the club and love the team and love the players. So, that’s sort of – like I said – almost taken for granted because I’m so used to being around this club and how the fans are, but they’ll be with us in every game. We are sort of a bit spoiled; they stick with us through good and bad times, but they’ll be with us every single game, so that I have no doubt about. "Gio Reyna

"Oh, I think the obvious one is my family and friends, which is pretty clear – obviously not being able to see them that much, and they visit as much as they can, but it’s not the same. Facetime helps a lot with that, but probably, besides them, probably the food. The food and, yeah, it’s hard to describe. A little bit of everything; it’s my home, you know? There’s no place like home, as they say, so being used to where I grew up and the same roads and the same parks and all these little things that you have in your head and the sort of program that you do in your day-to-day life… Yeah, sort of just the home feeling, and I’d say just being home and food."Gio Reyna

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