Excellent start: Dest and Pepi at the World Cup

The United States with PSV players Sergino Dest and Ricardo Pepi has started excellently at the 2026 World Cup on home soil. Team USA won in Los Angeles 4-1 against Paraguay in Group D.

From the kickoff, Dest was positioned as right winger and in the first half had a number of good actions that created a lot of danger. Ricardo Pepi started the match on the bench in favor of teammate striker Folarin Balogun, and former PSV player Malik Tillman also appeared from the start in the starting lineup.

Within seven minutes, the Americans scored. Through Christian Pulisic, the ball ended up with Winston McKennie after a flowing attack, and this ultimately resulted in an own goal by Damian Bobadilla.

A few minutes after the first drink break, Team USA seemed set to go 2-0 thanks to Folarin Balogun, but that goal was rightly ruled out for offside. In the 31st minute, though, it was Balogun who found the net again after yet another flowing American attack that was finished by the forward.

In stoppage time of the first half, the team of head coach Mauricio Pochettino even went 3-0 up. Once again, Balogun managed to score the third goal, and it was a jewel of a strike.

After halftime, chances were scarce on both sides and in minute 72 one PSV player was substituted and the other PSV player came on. Pepi replaced Balogun while Dest was taken over by Tim Weah.

One minute after the substitution, Paraguay came back into the match via a goal by Mauricio, but despite that, the victory for Team USA was no longer in danger. Substitute Giovanni Reyna, who replaced Malik Tillman in the 82nd minute, determined the final score at 4-1, and in this way the national team of the United States scored four goals in a World Cup match for the first time.