Gregg Berhalter opened up about the controversy involving himself and the Reyna family, describing it as “sad and traumatic,” but is now focused on moving forward
U.S. Soccer recently conducted an independent investigation into the relationship between Gregg Berhalter and the Reyna family, which was prompted by allegations from Gio Reyna’s family that Berhalter had committed an act of domestic violence as a college student.
The results of the investigation, which were released on Monday, confirmed that Berhalter had indeed committed the act, but it also concluded that he had not broken any U.S. Soccer rules.
Berhalter thinks controversy took away from USMNT’s World Cup campaign
Berhalter was open and honest about the incident and was cleared to return as USMNT coach if the federation chooses. But despite the trauma caused by the controversy, Berhalter is now looking to move on.
According to the investigation report released by U.S. Soccer, the Reyna family was also found to have interfered in the national team’s affairs on behalf of their son, Gio. However, Berhalter wants to move on from the controversy, even though he expressed sadness over the end of his friendship with the Reyna family.
“I would just say it’s a sad situation”
Berhalter
“I would just say it’s a sad situation,” he told the Telegraph. “However, we are talking about people you have known for over three decades. It’s sad and it’s in some way traumatic. But it’s something you have to deal with.”
“The only way to describe it is sad,” he said. “It is unfortunate that this is the world we live in. I think it diverted a lot of attention away from a strong performance at the World Cup.
“It diverted a lot of attention away from how good the team is and how strong it was. Team mentality. The guys were amazing at the World Cup. So focused, so disciplined and for a young team it was really incredible to see from a coaching standpoint.”
