Bad news came out of the Netherlands last weekend. PSV officially announced that Sergiño Dest suffered “what appears to be a serious knee injury” in training. They are still evaluating how long he will be out for, but they are “almost certain” it will be an “extended period of time.”

Since the news, there have been more reports coming out saying Dest will be out for six to nine months, although PSV have yet to say anything on that. But if their initial assessment is correct and he is out for a long period, then the USMNT will have to figure out his replacement for the Copa América.

This is a brutal blow as Dest is having an amazing season at PSV, arguably his best season as a professional player. The USMNT do have a decent depth at the right-back position, but there is no arguing that there will be a drop-off in quality.

Let’s take a look at those alternatives.

1. Joe Scally

The most obvious replacement for Dest would be Joe Scally, who has established himself as a starter in the German Bundesliga.

After coming up through the NYCFC academy, Scally joined Borussia Monchengladbach at 18. Now 21, he’s played 86 games in one of the best leagues in the world, and seems like a no-brainer to be Dest’s direct replacement on paper.

However, the game is not played on paper. Scally is a very different player to Dest as he is much more defensive minded. He’s also yet to impress in a USMNT shirt, which is surprising because he obviously has enough quality to play in the Bundesliga, but can’t seem to fit in Gregg Berhalter’s system.

After his poor showing against Jamaica last month, where he got yanked after half-time, it doesn’t seem like Berhalter trusts him to be a starter, even with Dest’s injury.

2) Other Europe-based Options

Since 2021, fans have been saying that the USMNT have a great right-back depth due to the amount of right-backs moving to Europe. However, the issue is most of them haven’t really panned out the way fans hoped.

One of the right-back options currently playing in Europe is Bryan Reynolds, who joined Roma when he was just 19.

Although his time in Italy didn’t work out, he is now in Belgium with Westerlo, and seems to be doing okay. He was a part of the USMNT’s 2023 Gold Cup squad and has been spending a lot of time with the U-23 squad preparing for this summer’s Olympics. 

It seems more likely that he would be going to the Olympics instead of the Copa América.

The other option is Reggie Cannon, who was seen as Berhalter’s favorite a couple of years ago. Unfortunately for him, he’s fallen out of pecking order since and even missed out on the 2022 World Cup squad— where four other right-backs were called up ahead of him.

Currently with QPR, it seems unlikely for him to be back with the USMNT after two years.

One more option most fans seem to forget is Marlon Fossey, an athletic right-back currently in Belgium with Standard Liège. He’s made 28 appearances for them this season, but doesn’t seem to be on Berhalter’s radar for now.

3) MLS Options

During his first spell in charge, Berhalter relied a lot on MLS players. He doesn’t seem to be doing that since he returned, but he could be turning his attention to MLS for Dest’s replacement. 

The two players he could be looking at have both World Cup and European experience— DeAndre Yedlin and Shaq Moore.

Yedlin spent time in Tottenham, Sunderland, Newcastle, and Galatasary. He came back to MLS with Inter Miami in 2022 and recently joined FC Cincinnati. Moore, on the other hand, spent time in Spain with Levante and Tenerife. He now plays for Nashville.

At 30, it seems like Yedlin’s time with the USMNT is over because his legs are gone. He relied a lot on his pace and athleticism throughout his career and he’s fallen off considerably in the last couple of years. Moore could be a better option for Berhalter as he is younger and supposed to be in his prime as a player.

4) Make-shift Right-back Options

If the above options aren’t good enough then Berhalter could opt for either Tim Weah or Weston McKennie to drop back and slot in at the right-back position.

Weah has always played as a winger for the USMNT, and offers so much going forward. However, he spent a good amount of time as a right-back for Lille and has also been playing a lot as a wing-back for Juventus this season. He offers the same dynamicsm and offensive qualities that Dest has, and if he drops back, then Haji Wight could take his position as a winger-- the position Wright has thrived in a lot at Coventry this season.

McKennie has also played the wing-back position at times for Juventus, and played as a right-back when Scally got yanked at half-time against Jamaica. It’s hard to see him starting there at the Copa América though, as he is a key player for the USMNT in midfield.

Dest’s injury is definitely a blow for the USMNT. Even if he is not very good at defending and can be a liability at times, he offers a lot to the team. Berhalter does have a good amount of options though for replacement and with two months left until the tournament, he will have a lot of thinking to do to get the best out of his squad.

Let’s see which option he goes with.