Gio Reyna & USMNT Stars ‘Helped’ Joe Scally With Highlights of Vinicius Jr

WHAT HAPPENED?

The United States completed their preparations for a Copa America tournament on home soil by facing the Selecao in Orlando. They had been crushed 5-1 by Colombia a matter of days earlier, but were able to hold Brazil to a commendable 1-1 draw.

THE BIGGER PICTURE

Borussia Monchengladbach defender Scally more than held his own against Real Madrid superstar Vinicius, with the Ballon d’Or contender being kept relatively quiet. The 21-year-old full-back seemingly benefited from the endless stream of videos that had been passed his way on WhatsApp.

WHAT SCALLY SAID

Scally has told the Men In Blazers podcast of his preparations for a meeting with Vinicius: “I have a group chat with Josh Sargent, Gio and Brenden Aaronson. The whole week they were sending me the stupid highlight clips – on Instagram and stuff – of him making defenders look stupid. I’ve probably seen every single dribble that he’s ever done in his life just because they sent me it non-stop for four days straight!”

Sargent has said of that approach to ‘helping’ an international colleague: “That was not just me, that was all of us! He had a really good game so, you know, props to him. It worked!”

WHAT NEXT FOR THE USMNT?

The USMNT are now readying themselves for a Copa America opener against Bolivia on Sunday, with that fixture taking place at AT&T Stadium in Texas. Scally will be hoping to figure again in that contest, with vital experience being picked up across 11 senior appearances for his country.