{"id":33332,"date":"2026-06-13T00:36:15","date_gmt":"2026-06-13T00:36:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/13\/this-game-is-perfect-for-usmnts-sergino-dest-is-primed-to-shine-vs-paraguay\/"},"modified":"2026-06-13T00:36:15","modified_gmt":"2026-06-13T00:36:15","slug":"this-game-is-perfect-for-usmnts-sergino-dest-is-primed-to-shine-vs-paraguay","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/13\/this-game-is-perfect-for-usmnts-sergino-dest-is-primed-to-shine-vs-paraguay\/","title":{"rendered":"This game is perfect for: USMNT\u2019s Sergi\u00f1o Dest is primed to shine vs. Paraguay"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n<\/p>\n

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The Athletic has live coverage of USMNT vs. Paraguay<\/a> at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

The United States\u2019 World Cup opener against Paraguay on Friday will provide opportunities for a number of American players to shine. But one stands out to me.<\/p>\n

This game is perfect for Sergi\u00f1o Dest, who is exactly the type of player U.S. sports fans love to watch \u2014 and exactly the type of player Paraguay might find impossible to contain.<\/p>\n

Every World Cup team needs characters. Players who capture the imagination. Players who make people stop scrolling, lean forward and wonder what might happen next.<\/p>\n

What American soccer craves is for, years from now, people to look back on this team and this World Cup as something special and iconic. Just like the last time the U.S. hosted the tournament, hopefully with an even deeper run. The 1994 squad had personalities everywhere<\/a>. Marcelo Balboa and Alexi Lalas stood out and there was Tony Meola, too, who had that Steven Seagal-style ponytail that I still tease him about to this day. Then there was Cobi Jones, all pace and yep, that hair.<\/p>\n

Those players gave fans something to connect with, and when I look at Dest, he has that modern-day connectivity. He brings a freestyle tendency to dribble at players. He likes to be expressive on the ball, daring and creative. That\u2019s typically what American supporters \u2014 not necessarily soccer-specific supporters, just sports fans \u2014 want to see. They want that X-factor, the player who\u2019s trying moves, doing tricks, and entertaining. That\u2019s the kind of player he is.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s the wild card with the U.S. men\u2019s national team because he\u2019s not afraid to beat players. When he\u2019s doing that as a right wingback, he opens up the field for everybody else.<\/p>\n

And he\u2019s far more than just an entertainer. He\u2019s one of the tactical keys to this entire U.S. team.<\/p>\n

When I rewatched that U.S.-Paraguay game from November<\/a>, one thing stood out immediately was that he found himself in great positions higher up the pitch.<\/p>\n

He forced Paraguay to shift over and, in doing so, unbalanced them. When he beats the first player he\u2019s going up against, everyone has to shift over. He\u2019s creating space for Folarin Balogun, Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie and, on the opposite side, Antonee Robinson.<\/p>\n

Get free access to the most comprehensive World Cup coverage in The Athletic app<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

He\u2019ll have a chance to make a big impact not only in this Paraguay game but also against Australia, because he\u2019s great on the counter. He\u2019s not afraid to take risks and make runs into the box. Sometimes he\u2019s the closest guy to the goal.<\/p>\n

This is a genuine chance for him to shine. The Paraguayans have already seen the problems he can cause, because they struggled against him once. They\u2019ll undoubtedly pay him more attention this time around, but that creates a different problem altogether. If you overload one side to stop Dest, you\u2019re leaving space somewhere else.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s where Robinson enters the picture. He doesn\u2019t possess Dest\u2019s close control or improvisational ability, but he is every bit as aggressive with his forward runs. One of the biggest reasons for optimism around this U.S. team is that it can hurt opponents from both flanks.<\/p>\n

You can\u2019t simply focus on one of them.<\/p>\n

\n
\"Sergino<\/p>\n
\n

\n Sergi\u00f1o Dest takes on Miguel Almir\u00f3n in the USA\u2019s November 2025 friendly vs. Paraguay (John Dorton \/ ISI Photos \/ USSF \/ Getty Images)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

If Paraguay commits extra bodies to dealing with Dest, then Robinson suddenly has room to attack on the opposite side. If Paraguay tries to cover both fullbacks, gaps start appearing centrally for Balogun and Pulisic \u2014 which is a best-case scenario!<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s remember, Dest brings genuine star quality to this side.<\/p>\n

In 2020 he was signed by Barcelona on a five-year contract. It seemed like anything was possible for him then, and while it did not quite work out, it feels like this might become a relaunch for him.<\/p>\n

Even before the Bar\u00e7a signing, he was thriving at Ajax in the Champions League, who was competitive at that level. He has high-level pedigree. He plays for the U.S. but had the option to play for the Netherlands. And he chose Barcelona, when Bayern Munich was a strong option.<\/p>\n

When he was in Spain, the timing wasn\u2019t ideal because the club\u2019s entire project was in transition. There were good moments, but ultimately Barcelona moved in a different direction. I actually think he would thrive there right now.<\/p>\n

Nevertheless, after some strong performances with PSV and a successful return from injury, Dest finds himself with another huge opportunity. This is a perfect chance for him to propel himself back into that category of the elite right attacking fullbacks in the world.<\/p>\n

If he has a standout tournament, his name will be linked again with the biggest clubs \u2014 and if he stars Friday night, the U.S. will have a great chance at three massive early points in the World Cup.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n


\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Athletic has live coverage of USMNT vs. Paraguay at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The United States\u2019 World Cup<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":33333,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_animmysite_disable_animation":false,"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/athletic\/uploads\/wp\/2025\/10\/15225221\/USATSI_27020626-scaled.jpg?width=1200&height=630&fit=cover","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[214],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33332","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-usa-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33332","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33332"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33332\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33333"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33332"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33332"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33332"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}