Reyna Figures Prominently In U.S. Win

VANCOUVER, Canada — Through the discouraging moments--and there were plenty of those for the U.S. National team on its road to qualifying for next year’s World Cup in France--Claudio Reyna never despaired.

In fact, he envisioned the U.S. clinching its berth Sunday, and he played a critical role in making that come true.

Reyna, a skillful midfielder who has been sharpening his skills with Wolfsburg of the German First Division, scored the first U.S. goal Sunday and set up the first of Roy Wegerle’s two goals in a 3-0 victory over Canada at Swangard Stadium. The victory guaranteed the U.S. its berth in France and inspired players to drape themselves in American flags as they hugged each other and shook hands with some of the boisterous American fans in the crowd of 8,420.

“I had a feeling we’d wrap it up today,” said Reyna, who played on the 1992 U.S. Olympic team at Barcelona and made the 1994 U.S. World Cup team but didn’t play because of a hamstring injury. “We certainly have come a long way. All we can do now is celebrate.

“It’s tough. We have a lot of young guys. I’d say 75% of the team has never gone through World Cup qualifying [because the U.S. got an automatic bid as the host in 1994]. We were learning along the way. There were many low points. We had times after the Jamaica game [a scoreless tie March 2] where we had some games when we should have come away with more than a point, but you’ve got to expect that in World Cup qualifying.”

U.S. Coach Steve Sampson expected Reyna, 24, to be a play-making midfielder in front of stopper Tom Dooley. Reyna, the heir apparent to Tab Ramos in midfield, didn’t disappoint.

“He has the ability to hold the ball, which is a great asset,” Sampson said. “There were times we held the ball too much, but Claudio is one of the few players who was able to hold onto the ball in the midfield.”

Reyna gave the U.S. the early lead and confidence it needed by scoring in the fifth minute. Wegerle took a pass from Joe-Max Moore and broke away down the left side before passing to the middle to Reyna, who deftly turned to shake off a defender and beat helpless Canadian goalkeeper Paul Dolan from about 10 yards out.

“Roy was through and I was pushing up, and I knew the ball was coming to me,” Reyna said. “Roy has great vision. I was able to stay calm and show some goal-scoring touch, which I don’t have.”

The scoring touch belonged to Wegerle Sunday. And if the other American players had reason to despair during qualifying play because they weren’t scoring or playing creatively, he had even more reason.

Plagued by knee problems throughout his career, he hadn’t played for the national team for two years and didn’t play for D.C. United in the Major League Soccer finals, although he was available. He was invited back to the national team only in September, returning in a 1-0 victory over Costa Rica in Portland, Ore.

On Sunday, his injuries and bad fortune were nearly forgotten in his euphoria over scoring the two goals that ensured the U.S. a trip to France. He scored in the 81st minute, set up for a breakaway on a free kick by Reyna, and scored in the waning moments by chipping the ball past the goalkeeper after a nice run up the middle.

“There were times when I thought things were over for me, and that was a horrible feeling,” said Wegerle, who had scored three goals in his previous 28 national team appearances. “I’m just happy for the team and the country and myself.”