BARCELONA
USMNT star Sergio Dest set to be rescued from Barcelona “hell” by PSV Eindhoven
The full back impressed for Dutch club Ajax and could soon return to the Netherlands after falling out of favour with the LaLiga champions.
USMNT defender Sergiño Dest’s time at Barcelona is expected to come to an end sooner rather than later and his agents believe that a move back to the Netherlands with PSV Eindhoven is a done deal, at least for the 2023-24 season.
ESPN reported on Thursday that the Dutch club were eager to see the 22-year-old return on loan to the Eredivisie, where he starred for Ajax in 2019/20. PSV finished second in the Dutch top flight in 2022-23 and have already strengthened with the additions of USMNT duo Ricardo Pepi and Malik Tillman this summer.
Barcelona keen to move Dest on
Dest is considered surplus to requirements at Barça and is one of several players the LaLiga champions have been trying to offload to free up space on their wage bill.
The USMNT international was one of the most promising young full backs in European football when Barcelona signed him from Ajax for an initial fee of €21 million ($23m).
However, Dest has struggled to nail down a place in the Barcelona first team since arriving in Spain and he spent last season on loan at AC Milan. His year in Italy was a disaster and he failed to make a single appearance for the club after January.
He returned to Barcelona this summer but was not in the squad for their LaLiga opener against Getafe last weekend.
USMT defender speaks about impact of pro soccer on mental health
Earlier this month, Dest spoke openly about the affect that a career in professional soccer can have on players’ mental health.
“You cannot have a mental breakdown,” he told CBS News. “It’s almost impossible because you have to stand there for your club, you have to represent people.
“Sometimes it’s difficult because people don’t know what’s going on. Only thing I can do is laugh about it.”