USMNT’s Sergiño Dest, sidelined with ACL injury, will miss Copa América

Sergiño Dest, the highly skilled right back for the U.S. men’s national soccer team, will undergo ACL surgery and miss this summer’s Copa América, a major tune-up for the 2026 World Cup.

“I will have an operation soon and will try to come back as soon as possible to my top level,” he said Wednesday. “It will be a difficult time for me, but I know these times only make me stronger. I will come back to make you all proud.”

Dest, 23, was injured April 20 while training with his Dutch club, PSV Eindhoven. At the time, the club called it an “apparently serious injury.” Subsequent tests confirmed the ACL damage. He is scheduled to undergo surgery May 8 in Santa Monica, Calif.

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Offering speed and exquisite footwork, Dest has been U.S. coach Gregg Berhalter’s top right back since 2021. He appeared in all four matches at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and has made 33 appearances overall, scoring twice and assisting five times.

“We send Serg our best wishes and support for a speedy recovery,” the U.S. team said on social media accounts.

Dest’s most recent U.S. match was March 24 in the Concacaf Nations League final in Arlington, Tex. He put on a dazzling performance during the 2-0 victory over Mexico, the Americans’ third consecutive Nations League title.

Dest had missed the semifinal against Jamaica because of a red card suspension, which carried over from a quarterfinal meltdown in November at Trinidad and Tobago.

Dest joined PSV Eindhoven last summer on a season-long loan from FC Barcelona. The Dutch club had been preparing to exercise an option to acquire him permanently from the Spanish giants.

This season, Dest started 25 times and scored twice for PSV, which is running away with the Eredivisie title. He also started nine UEFA Champions League matches as PSV advanced to the round of 16 before losing to Germany’s Borussia Dortmund.

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With Dest sidelined, Joe Scally will apparently move to the forefront. The 21-year-old is a regular for Borussia Mönchengladbach in the German Bundesliga. He was on the 2022 World Cup squad but did not play. In the Nations League semifinal, Scally struggled in the first half and was replaced at halftime.

Berhalter could also turn to Tim Weah, a natural attacker who typically plays a deeper, wingback role for his Italian club, Juventus. Shaq Moore (Nashville SC) and DeAndre Yedlin (Inter Miami) were the other right backs on the World Cup squad.

The U.S. team will report to the D.C. area in late May and early June to prepare for pre-Copa América friendlies against Colombia on June 8 in Landover, Md., and Brazil on June 12 in Orlando.

The Americans’ Copa group matches are against Bolivia on June 23 in Arlington, Texas, Panama on June 27 in Atlanta, and Uruguay on July 1 in Kansas City, Mo.

Dest will also miss two friendlies in each of the September and October international windows and the 2024-25 Nations League quarterfinals in November.

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