Sergino Dest on playing with Messi, facing Vinicius Jr. Plus: Everton’s stuntman saviour?

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Hello! Sergino Dest is injured — but Mauricio Pochettino is going to love him when he’s back.

Coming up:

🧐 USMNT’s Dest analyses his game

🛬 The stuntman eyeing Everton

👬🏽 Premier League’s deadly duos

🏟️ Fans to buy Bundesliga stadium?

Simply the Dest: A certain future Pochettino pick — this is why

Bated breath in the American ranks as Pochettino mulls over his first squad. He has kept a low profile since taking up the role of United States men’s national team head coach but his picks for two friendlies next month — against Panama and Mexico — will give an impression of the preferred direction of travel.

Sergino Dest isn’t going to get a call-up this time. He is recovering from the anterior cruciate ligament injury he suffered at PSV Eindhoven last season. It cost him a Copa America place, though PSV still signed him from Barcelona on a free transfer.

The 23-year-old’s return date is set for March and make no mistake: Pochettino will not be slow in integrating him once he is fit.

The full-back is one of the USMNT’s best. He’s also a showman, with an attitude Pochettino will appreciate. The Athletic’s Greg O’Keeffe caught up with Dest for a full-on dissection of his game (which is free to read) — and to learn why he is all about the tricks.

Case for the defence

In 2020, Dest became the first U.S. international to sign for Barca. He cost £18.9m ($23.4m). The transfer from Ajax let him rub shoulders with Lionel Messi, albeit briefly. It let him have a go at facing down Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior.

This is how Dest, who was born in the Netherlands to an American father, remembers those experiences:

🗣️ “You’re playing in La Liga but it felt like playing in Eredivisie (the Dutch top division) against a relegation team, the amount of space you had because of how good Messi’s passing was.”

🗣️ “I don’t know if you remember my first Clasico against Vinicius Junior. In 90 minutes, he only went past me once, otherwise he was in my pocket the whole game. Suddenly I’m a good defender?”

The second comment touches on a bone of contention with Dest. In some quarters, he is regarded as defensively limited — a versatile and attacking right-back who could do with improving off the ball.

But he’s a free spirit and dead set on finding joy in the sport. He has just opened a street football court in his home city of Almere, and aims to set up another in Miami.

His story about a run-in with PSV coach Peter Bosz was pretty funny. PSV were leading AZ Alkmaar 4-1 in an Eredivisie game last season, on their way to the title. Bosz told Dest to be conservative with his positioning. Dest ignored him and assisted a fifth PSV goal (below).

“He was shaking his head,” Dest said. “I always want to be playing.”

Pochettino won’t be up for insubordination, but he’ll surely like that. Poch has a winner’s mentality. Dest does too. The pair should be made for each other.

News round-up

Spurred On

It started badly for Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League last night when Radu Dragusin grabbed his spade, dug himself a hole and incurred a red card in the seventh minute (above).

No dramas. Spurs held their nerve, pinged three goals past Qarabag and got the job done. That’s more like it.

Meet stuntman Dan: Pilot and billionaire Friedkin could be Everton’s best bet

(Silvia Lore/Getty Images)

If you only get as far as the headline on Patrick Boyland’s terrific profile of prospective new Everton owner Dan Friedkin, you’ll get the picture: Pilot, stuntman, billionaire businessman.

Mr Low Profile, then. Despite that, I can’t help feeling that the intended buyout of Everton by The Friedkin Group (TFG) — the American investment firm of which stuntman Dan is CEO — represents the best of the viable options out there.

TFG has enjoyed good times at Roma, where Friedkin hoisted the Europa Conference League trophy in 2022 (above), though their reputation there is suffering.

This latest takeover attempt feels more credible than the 777 Partners and John Textor episodes. TFG could bring a large chunk of Everton’s debt under control, too.

I’m not saying it’s perfect, I’m not saying it’s a winner and I’m not saying the deal will definitely conclude — but it has to be worth a shot.

Deadly Duos

That sound you hear at Stamford Bridge? It’s Chelsea threatening to get their house in order. They’re fifth in the table. They’re on a bit of a roll. Let’s tempt fate by saying, ‘They look good’.

It helps that the double act of Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson is busting moves. Between them, they have created 10 goals and 22 chances for each other, marking them out as the Premier League’s most effective attacking combination since the start of last season. That is £70million ($94m) well spent.

Props to Mohamed Salah and Darwin Nunez, too. Five games in and they’ve combined to fashion 39 opportunities. Liverpool are going to hand out some hidings this season.

Quiz question

Arsenal’s Reiss Nelson, on loan at Fulham, has scored all of his five Premier League goals at the Emirates or Craven Cottage. What we want to know: which Spurs player from the 1990s holds the top-flight record for exclusively scoring at home? A clue: he bagged nine in total.

The answer will be here later, and in Monday’s TAFC.

Around The Athletic FC

• Germany’s St Pauli are proudly left-wing. In the spirit of socialism, they want to sell a majority stake in their stadium to their fans, as a means of making them more competitive (but also maintaining their ethos). It’s a novel idea. I like it.
• Are Leeds United cursed? Their old manager, Don Revie, thought they might be and hired a fortune teller to try and lift the hex. We’re guessing it’s active, though, because since Formula 1 powerhouse Max Verstappen was pictured with the club’s shirt in July, he hasn’t won a single race. Textbook.
• The latest version of EA Sports FC is out. If you’re a gamer, this review of FC 25 by Ajay Rose is your cup of tea. The three-versus-three feature sounds cool.
• The Athletic FC Podcast is asking: who, if anybody, wants the Club World Cup? In no way am I flagging this so I can point out that our team took top spot in the sports category at the British Podcast Awards last night.
• Most clicked in yesterday’s TAFC: Spurs captain Son Heung-min’s thoughts on Rodrigo Bentancur.

Catch a match

(Selected games)

Today: Ligue 1: Paris Saint-Germain vs Rennes, 3pm/8pm — beIN Sports, Fubo/Ligue 1 Pass.

Saturday: Premier League: Newcastle United vs Manchester City, 7.30am/12,30pm — USA Network, Fubo/TNT Sports; Arsenal vs Leicester City, 10am/3pm — Peacock Premium; Wolverhampton Wanderers vs Liverpool, 12.30pm/5.30pm — USA Network, Fubo, Sky Sports; La Liga: Osasuna vs Barcelona, 3pm/8pm — ESPN+, Fubo/Premier Sports, La Liga TV; Bundesliga: Bayern Munich vs Bayer Leverkusen, 12.30pm/5.30pm — ESPN+/Sky Sports; Serie A: Udinese vs Inter Milan, 9am/2pm — CBS, Paramount+, Fubo; MLS: Inter Miami vs Charlotte, 7.30pm/12.30am — MLS Season Pass/Apple TV; New York Red Bulls vs New York City, 7.30pm/12.30am — MLS Season Pass/Apple TV.

Sunday: Premier League: Ipswich Town vs Aston Villa, 9am/2pm — USA Network, Fubo/Sky Sports; Manchester United vs Tottenham Hotspur, 11.30am/4.30pm — USA Network, Fubo/Sky Sports; La Liga: Atletico Madrid vs Real Madrid, 3pm/8pm — ESPN+, Fubo/ITV4, Premier Sports, La Liga TV.

(Top photo: David S Bustamante/Soccrates/Getty Images)