INGLEWOOD, Calif. — For the second time in less than a year, Panama stunned the United States men’s national team in tournament play.
But unlike last summer’s loss to Los Canaleros in the first round of the U.S.-hosted Copa América, Thursday’s loss in Concacaf Nations League semifinal guarantees that the Americans will not claim the title of a competition they’d won three straight times from 2021 to 2024.
“I am very, very disappointed, because I think the way that we approached the game and started the game wasn’t in the right way,” USMNT coach Mauricio Pochettino said after the 1-0 loss on Cecilio Waterman‘s goal with one minute of second half stoppage time to go. “We need to find a way to compete better.”
Here are three quick thoughts on the match.
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Play of the game
Off a U.S. turnover deep in their own end, Waterman scored in the fourth minute of second half stoppage time, beating Matt Turner with a low shot to the far post.
“Not great,” Turner said. “We lose three duels in a row, and they find some space, and we’re a step behind everywhere, and it’s a good finish. I’ll look at myself. I think we’ll all look at ourselves and see what we can do better.”
To a man, the U.S. players blamed their lack of urgency. That’s a problem that has plagued the program regularly since the 2022 World Cup, costing then-coach Gregg Berhalter his job following the Copa América debacle.
“There’s no lack of communication in what was happening today,” midfielder Tyler Adams said. “We knew exactly what we had to do. We knew we needed to be competitive. I don’t think we were as competitive as we needed to be.”
Turning point
The U.S. controlled played in the first half and had three golden opportunities to take the lead. Two came just before the 20-minute mark. First Josh Sargent’s defected shot beat Panama keeper Orlando Mosquera but not the post. Then Mosquera stopped a point-blank header by Weston McKennie off a pinpoint cross from Tim Weah.
But Sargent thought he’d scored later in the second half, only for the goal to be ruled out after it was determined that Weah was offside in the buildup. Which was a pity, because Sargent finished his chance with aplomb:
Had any of those opportunities gone in – or one of the two chances substitute Patrick Agyemang had in the second half – the outcome could have been different. Adams had a chance to equalize at the death but sent his effort over Panama’s crossbar.
“I think if we score a goal at all, they’re chasing the game,” defender Chris Richards said. “We left them in the game for a little bit too long.”
Key stat
The U.S. enjoyed almost 70 percent of the ball and completed more than twice as many passes as Panama (645 to 320) but still couldn’t score.
“We have the control, we have the possession, we have the passes. But we didn’t use it,” Pochettino said. “These numbers mean that you could win the game, but you don’t win because, it’s not like another sport…[in soccer] the opponent can have one shot on target and score.”
Which is exactly what happened, as Waterman’s strike was Panama’s lone shot on goal all night.
What’s next for Panama?
Thomas Christiansen’s side advances to Sunday’s final, where they will have a chance to win a Concacaf title for the first time in program history. Panama will play Mexico, which beat Canada 2-0 later Thursday in the second semifinal.
“Panama has to be proud of what we have achieved tonight,” Christiansen said. “We will enjoy it for few hours, and then we will focus that final.”
What’s next for the USMNT?
Despite being eliminated from title contention, Pochettino’s team still has another game to go this month before his players return to their clubs. The U.S. and Canada will contest the third place match, which kicks off a few hours before Sunday’s finale at SoFi Stadium.
Neither team wanted to be in that one, to be sure. At the same time, the Americans and Canadians have become fierce rivals in recent years. Canada won the last meeting between the two sides, a friendly last September, and they could have added incentive to beat their southern neighbor again.
Last month, Jesse Marsch, the Reds’ American coach, made news when he called President Trump’s discourse about making Canada the USA’s 51st state “unsettling and, frankly, insulting.”
“We’ll be excited for the U.S. game,” Marsch said after his team lost to Mexico on Thursday.
Doug McIntyre is a soccer writer for FOX Sports who has covered the United States men’s and women’s national teams at FIFA World Cups on five continents. Follow him at @ByDougMcIntyre.
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