Borussia Dortmund managing director Carsten Cramer says the club have won the lottery with Giovanni Reyna, with it his belief that the United States youth-team star has the same potential as Christian Pulisic.
Reyna has enjoyed a meteoric rise to stardom since joining his hometown club New York City FC back in 2015.
The 17-year-old spent four years in the MLS side's youth set-up before being snapped up by Dortmund, where he has quickly established himself as a regular in Lucien Favre's senior team.
Reyna took in 17 appearances in all competitions during his debut season at Westfalenstadion, and has been trusted with a more prominent role at the start of the 2020-21 campaign.
The midfielder has contributed two goals and five assists to Dortmund's cause across 10 outings, making an impressive impact in both the Bundesliga and Champions League.
Cramer thinks Dortmund hit the jackpot when they signed Reyna, whose career trajectory is currently mirroring that of fellow countryman Pulisic.
Pulisic also moved from MLS to Germany at the age of 16, and went on to appear in 127 games for BVB before being sold to Chelsea for £54 million ($70m) in 2019.
Cramer told Goal and SPOX of the impact Reyna has had on and off the pitch at Signal Iduna Park: "His potential is huge. Just like Christian (Pulisic), he is not only an outstanding footballer, but also a really good guy. For us, it is a six in the lottery in terms of sport and marketing.
"But the latter component was not decisive for us bringing in the boy. We do not commit to deals according to nationality or marketing value, but according to sporting criteria.
"But it is a nice coincidence that someone from marketing can use [the signing] meaningfully."
Reyna will be back in contention for a place in Favre's starting XI when Dortmund take in a trip to Club Brugge in the Champions League on Wednesday night.
The German giants are currently sitting third in Group F on three points, having bounced back from a 3-1 defeat away at Lazio by beating Zenit St Petersburg 2-1 on matchday two.
After their latest European outing, Dortmund will look ahead to the first Klassiker clash of the season against Bayern Munich on Saturday, with only goal difference separating the two clubs at the top of the Bundesliga standings after six fixtures.
