The Netherlands-United States of the Round of 16 of the World Cup was a meeting of friends for Sergiño Dest. Trained at Ajax, he grew up on Dutch soil alongside the likes of De Ligt, Jurrien Timber, Noa Lang or Kenneth Taylor. The difference between Dest and the rest is the selection it represents. Despite playing for the United States, Sergiño Dest also has Dutch nationality. The AC Milan player was therefore acting as an American spy in the Netherlands, but the information obtained was not enough for the United States to manage to avoid the 3-1 defeat in Qatar that dictated the farewell to the Championship. World.
For Sergiño Dest, the Atlantic Ocean never came between the European and American continents. To understand the history that connects the player to the Netherlands and the United States, it is necessary to look at their origins. The defender’s father, Kenneth Dest, was born in Suriname, a former colony of the Netherlands, and, as a child, moved to Brooklyn, in the United States. The Athletic tells that Kenneth played football until the US Army called him to serve in the Vietnam War. After the conflict, he was transferred to Germany. During this period, he went to Amsterdam for leisure, where he ended up meeting Sergiño’s mother.a Dutch woman also with origins in Suriname.
From the union between the two, on November 3, 2000, Sergiño Dest was born who lived his childhood in Almere, in the Netherlands. Kenneth Dest, to The Athletic, said that, at school, Sergiño was very sociable, but that the confidence that he did not show with the other children, he demonstrated with the ball at his feet. Still far from having any connection to the United States, a country he only visited when he was 14, Sergiño idolized Dutch stars like Wesley Sneijder, Arjen Robben and Robin van Persie.
The defender started playing at Alemere City FC. When Ajax first picked him up he struggled to integrate into the club’s style of play. It wasn’t until the under-17s that he started to make the starting line-up and it was also at this level that Dest became a North American international. Until then, he was not an athlete on whom Dutch officials had high hopes. Moreover, Kenneth Dest, due to his past in the US army, developed in Sergiño the same pride in playing at the service of the nation that his father felt while doing military service.
Later, at the under-20 level, he represented the United States in the World Cup, a competition in which the Americans reached the quarterfinals. From then on, the relationship with the country never ended. When it came to choosing which team to represent at an absolute level, the choice fell on the United States, but not without the Netherlands having tried to intervene. The Daily Mail reports that the then Dutch coach, Ronald Koeman, tried to convince Sergiño Dest to wear the Clockwork Orange shirt. However, US coach Gregg Berhalter traveled to Amsterdam to meet with the player. The seduction worked. Dest was convinced and on November 16, 2019, he made his debut in an official game in which the United States faced Canada counting for the CONCACAF League of Nations. Gregg Berhalter revealed happiness with the defender option. “We are happy to have Sergiño Dest with us, he is a brilliant player”, said the coach. To The Athletic, Sergiño’s father, Kenneth Dest, confirmed that it was “the feeling of loyalty” that led to the decision.
When he announced that he was going to represent Uncle Sam’s country, Sergiño Dest spoke to the communication channels of Ajax, the club with which he had a contract at the time. “Of course it was a difficult decision. The Netherlands showed interest, but I developed a very strong feeling for the US team. over the last few years and I believe in the blueprint and potential of American football.”
Sergiño Dest arrived at the Qatar World Cup after spells at Ajax and Barcelona. He is currently on loan from the Blaugrana team to AC Milan. With the United States, he has already played 23 games and scored two goals. At 22, he remains one of the most promising right-backs in world football.
