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Dest, Adams among American contingent to advance in European competitions

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A total of five American players will continue their fight for European glory this season after advancing in respective competitions on Thursday.

Barcelona’s Sergino Dest and RB Leipzig’s Tyler Adams were two of three American players who advanced in the UEFA Europa League on Thursday after watching their clubs claim second leg wins.

James Sands will also take part in the UEL quarterfinals as Rangers eliminated Borussia Dortmund from the competition at Ibrox Stadium. Timothy Chandler and Eintracht Frankfurt were already guaranteed a Round of 16 spot after clinching top spot in their group.

Konrad De La Fuente and Marseille advanced in the Europa Conference League after eliminating FK Qarabag on Thursday.

Dest played the full 90 minutes for Barcelona on Thursday in a 4-2 second leg win over Napoli. The U.S. men’s national team right back was a substitute in the first leg at the Camp Nou last week, but impressed on Thursday as Xavi Hernandez’s side rolled past their Serie A opponents.

Adams helped close out a 3-1 second leg victory for RB Leipzig over La Liga opponents Real Sociedad on Thursday, coming off of the bench for the final minutes of stoppage time. The USMNT midfielder started and played 45 minutes in a 2-2 first leg draw at Red Bull Arena last week and will join Dest and Sands in the quarterfinals.

Sands did not feature in Rangers’ 2-2 draw with Borussia Dortmund on Thursday, but watched as the Scottish Premiership club eliminated the Bundesliga visitors from the Europa League. The 21-year-old midfielder played 24 minutes in Dortmund last week off of the bench and now has four appearances under his belt since his loan move from NYCFC.

De La Fuente started in Marseill’s 3-1 first leg win against Qarabag last week and proceeded to score his first goal for the club on Thursday. The Florida native played the final nine minutes on Thursday, taking advantage of a Qarabag defensive error to score and celebrate his first goal for Marseille.

All four players will learn their fates for the Round of 16 on Friday as the draw for both competitions take place.

Here is a closer look at the qualified clubs for both the Europa League and Europa Conference League:


Europa League

  • Sevilla, Barcelona, RB Leipzig, FC Porto, Atalanta, Braga, Rangers, Real Betis, Red Star Belgrade, Eintracht Frankfurt, West Ham United, Bayer Leverkusen, Galatasaray, Lyon, Monaco, Spartak Moscow.

Europa Conference League

  • Bodo/Glimt, PSV, Partizan Belgrad, Marseille, Leicester City, PAOK Thessaloniki, Slavia Prague, Vitesse Arnhem, AZ Alkmaar, Roma, FC Basel, FC Kobenhaven, Feyenoord, Gent, LASK, Rennes.

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