NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. coach Gregg Berhalter plans to have Sergiño Dest at the team’s training camp for the CONCACAF Nations League final four next month, even though the defender is suspended for the March 21 semifinal against Jamaica.
The 23-year-old outside back lost his composure in a needless dispute with the referee during November’s quarterfinal second leg at Trinidad and Tobago, getting a pair of yellow cards for dissent in a 30-second span.
That triggered an automatic one-game suspension, and Dest is eligible for the March 24 championship or third-place match, against Mexico or Panama. The final four will be in Arlington, Texas.
“We know he can’t play for the semifinals, but in the event that we make the finals, we want him playing,” Berhalter said Monday during an interview at the office of The Associated Press. “He’s an important part of the team and we’re going to bring him along and hope that we can advance past Jamaica and play in the final.”
Dest is on loan this season from Barcelona to PSV Eindhoven.
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