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U.S. vs. Panama set for Philly
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Stuart Holden
The U.S. men’s national team will make its return to Philadelphia in a Gold Cup quarterfinal match-up against Panama. It will be the United States’ first appearance in Philadelphia since 1991, and it should be a great day for soccer fans in the Deleware Valley.
The U.S. will be coming off a lackluster 2-2 draw with Haiti, in which head coach Bob Bradley rested his starters. The team lacked composure on the defensive end, with Jay Heaps constantly getting beat by quicker forwards. Back-up goalkeeper Luis Robles looked extremely shaky, and didn’t inspire confidence in anybody. And the U.S. team failed to control the game for large stretches.
On July 18th, The Lincoln Financial Field crowd will thankfully see a drastically different lineup. Bob Bradley will return to his strongest starting eleven, which easily brushed aside Grenada and Honduras earlier in the group stage.
One player to keep an eye out for is U.S. midfielder Stuart Holden. He scored a stunning game-tying goal against Haiti, and has been a bright spot for the U.S. in this tournament. Holden, a former Clemson Tiger, played for Sunderland in England before coming to Major League Soccer. He has since become one of great young players in MLS, and is showing that he could become a great option for the U.S. attack in the near future. A versatile attacking midfielder, Holden causes a lot of trouble for opposing defenses with his one-on-one skill and crossing ability. He has also shown a booming shot that can score from anywhere.
There are other players that Panama will have to worry about. Robbie Rogers, who plays a similar game to Stuart Holden, will be very hard to contain on the wing. Charlie Davies, the extremely quick and dangerous striker, will lead the U.S. attack. And then there is Kyle Beckerman, the defensive midfielder who has impressed many fans with his intelligent play and calming presence on the field.
Panama will be no pushovers, and could the give the U.S. a competitive game. They tied Mexico earlier in the tournament, and are coming off a dominating 4-0 win over Nicaragua. They are lead by Blas Perez, who has two goals in the tournament. Perez plays for Pachuca in the Mexican first division, and the U.S. will have to pay close attention to him.
The U.S. will be the obvious favorites on Saturday, but they will still need to play a sound, defensive game to get through to the semi-finals. As the Haiti game showed, a few mistakes from the U.S. defense lead to two goals by Haiti. The return of rugged defender Chad Marshall and midfielder Kyle Beckerman, both of whom didn’t start against Haiti, will help the U.S. tremendously. If the U.S. can control possession from the beginning and make Panama chase them, it will be a comfortable victory for the U.S.
Kickoff is set for 8pm(et). The game will be shown live on Fox Soccer Channel.
Note: Canada and Honduras are playing in the other quarterfinal at 5pm(et) the same day. The game is also at Lincoln Financial Field.
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