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Gio Reyna makes US soccer debut, a day before 18th birthday

FILE - This Oct., 3, 2020, file photo shows Dortmund's Giovanni Reyna watching during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Borussia Dortmund and SC Freiburg in Dortmund, Germany. Gio Reyna, a son of former U.S. captain Claudio Reyna, got his first call-up to the U.S. national soccer team. The Borussia Dortmund midfielder is part of a 24-man roster for exhibitions at Wales on Nov. 12 and against Panama four days later in Austria. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File) (Martin Meissner, Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Gio Reyna made his U.S. national soccer team debut against Wales at Swansea on Thursday night on the day before his 18th birthday, joining his father and mother as the first three-member family in American history to make international soccer appearances.

Reyna, who has become a regular at Germany’s Borussia Dortmund, was among three players to debut, joined by 19-year-old Konrad de la Fuente of Barcelona and Yunus Musah of Valencia, who turns 18 on Nov. 29. Reyna and Musah became just the 12th and 13th players to make an appearance before turning 18.

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Claudio Reyna was a U.S. captain and played in three World Cups. He was 20 years, 5 months, 26 days when he made the first of 112 national team appearances as a 61st-minute substitute in an exhibition against Norway at Tempe, Arizona, on Jan. 15, 1994.

Danielle Egan was 19 years, 6 months, 14 days when she made the first of six international appearances in a friendly against Germany at Agai, Cyprus, on March 14, 1993. She married Claudio Reyna in 1997.

Zack Steffen is in goal for the United States, Sergiño Dest at right back, Matt Miazga and John Brooks in central defense, and Tyler Adams, Weston McKennie and Musah in midfield. De La Fuente, Sebastian Lletget and Reyna head the attack.

Starters averaged 22 years, 252 days (22.69), the fourth-youngest U.S. lineup behind games in 2018 against Italy (22.19), Bolivia (22.44) and France (22.50) – all 2018.

Steffen captains the U.S. for the first time in his 18th appearance, and Dest started at right back for the first time after making three starts on the left.

Adams makes his first appearance since March 21, 2019, against Ecuador, and Robinson makes his first since June 5, 2019, against Jamaica.

The game was the first for the Americans since Feb. 1.

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More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/Soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports


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