29' 0-1 USA up right touch, Panama's 2 LB defenders caught ball-watching and let #13 Micaela Capelle slip past them at 30m. Inside-out pass springs Capelle to box right foot, she crosses high, slide-tackle deflects ball goal-ward? Perfectly off the underside of the crossbar slightly behind stranded #1 Montenegro's head, she jumps but misses, down into left back.
34' 0-1 USA cross from the left, caught. Cross from box right foot, flying header high. All in Panama's half. I still dunno Panama's two forwards. 35' 0-1 #11 Horan spins at box top left, down the left to 6-top left. Right-foot shot high, off crossbar and not the good part of it, rebounds far right.
37' 0-1 #8 Johnston receives at box top right, #16 Katherine Gonzalez slides under her, then tugs her shirt to prevent the break-in. Yellow card. 38' 0-1 Free kick to 6-top scrum, cleared to 14m right post, one-touch shot skied way over.
40' 0-1 #11 Horan dribbles under pressure to 6-top box right, snaps a left-instep shot high to left post, #1 Montenegro blocks it over. 41' 0-1 USA left corner, #12 DiBernardo curls to 6-top center, #11 Horan runs a curl and arrives wide-open, powers a header just wide right. 42' 0-1 #8 Johnston drives to 3m 6-left, backpasses to 11m spot. #11 Horan volleys right instep, opened too much, shanks wide right. 43' 0-1 Panama long ball down box left into a 1-v-2 chase, high speed tangle, USA face-plant and cede a corner.
44' 0-1 USA boom the restart, find #7 Ohai running free through box top left. Ohai squares at 14m 6-left, to utterly open #11 Horan running the right-post lane. She lines up, measures the volley, and ... pings it ~2 diameters wide left low. Panama called for a deflection. 45' 0-2 USA left corner, #12 Vanessa DiBernardo sends it in, cleared out to 15m box top left. DiBernardo chases it down, drives it back into traffic as #11 Horan sidesteps to flick. #1 Montenegro loses focus, untouched through her wicket just as she scissors her legs closed. Bad time to swivel her head!
46' 0-2 USA subs in: - (1 of 3) #20 Maya Hayes for #11 Lindsey Horan - (2 of 3) #10 Mandy Laddish for #16 Sarah Killion
48' 0-2 USA through-ball springs somebody through box top left, to 14m 6-left. #1 Montenegro charges out like a blitzing safety, perfectly done: no shot window, induces a touch so heavy that the ball rolls harmlessly over.
50' 0-2 USA ping to #13 Capelle at box arc top right. She holds, splits the line with a pass to #7 Ohai, who is unfortunately boxing out her defender from in front at 14m left post. Shoots and nets, but offside by definition
53' 0-3 #8 Johnston receives at box top arc right, passes square to #20 Hayes at arc left foot. Hayes gets swarmed, does well to hold and possess. Everybody forgets about Johnston, she drifts inward to 14m right post, all alone and keeping herself onside. Hayes finally gets space, rolls diagonally into space. Johnston bursts forward, no obvious shot window, blasts it right at #1 Montenegro, and it misses her up around the shoulders, into center high.
56' 0-3 USA subs in (3 of 3) #15 Samantha Mewis for #8 Julie Johnston. 57' 0-3 USA left corner, #12 DiBernardo curls it in, cleared to 12m right post. #15 Mewis(?) volleys it to left post half-high, #1 Montenegro dives and catches it. Fumbles it on landing, trickles along goalline -- foul on USA, two defenders were there to clear it anyways. 59' 0-4 USA plays to #20 Maya Hayes at box top right, hips facing right touch. Quick spin strands her defender, huge acceleration to 6-top right, fires hard on the run, curls just inside the right post 1/2 high and billows the back.
61' 0-4 USA passes inside-out to #19 Stephanie Amack (DF) overlapping up at box top left, 1/2 step offside. She dribbles in and nets. 62' 0-4 Two left corners, nothing. A break-in, Cuba shields well and lets it roll over, USA fouls trying to get around. 65' 0-4 USA back off and pass around midfield. Panama never got out of their own half.
68' 0-4 Panama subs in (3 of 3) #14 Yessenia Zorrilla for #19 Eymi Quintero. 69' 0-4 USA pass crisply up centerline to #20 Hayes at box top center. She flicks a lay-off into space at 9m 6-left. #12 DiBernardo races in, beats the collapsing defenders, right outstep blocked by #1 Montenegro, rolls wide right and over.
69' 0-5 USA right corner. #12 DiBernardo outswings it to a wall of humanity across 6-top center. #1 Montenegro comes out, jumps high with two hands, and misses. Ball drops untouched to 6m left post, #15 Samantha Mewis volleys it low left post, nobody's left to get in the way.
75' 0-5 Panama rolls a long ground ball up left touch. #17 Brannon has good position, shields the lone forward and escorts ball over. A rare advance. #1 Heaberlin has had nothing to do, and no screen time either.
77' 0-5 USA backpasses from left corner. #20 Karla Riley stretches for it, #15 Mewis plows poorly through her right leg, twisting Riley around so hard that it looks like Riley tackled Mewis from behind. Yellow card on Mewis. 78' 0-6 Panama free kick, USA promptly steal it, pass long to #20 Maya Hayes at box top arc left, tight between two defenders. She simply out-accelerates them, gets footing, 14m left post, right instep low under #1 Montenegro and just inside left post. 80' 0-6 Somebody tees off at 24m box arc top center (#13 Capelle), rising to center high, #1 Montenegro must leap and palm it over. USA right corner, #12 DiBernardo sails it long.
86' 0-6 Panama's backline look upfield and can't even find targets. They venture a pass almost to midfield left touch, USA promptly steal it. Two killer passes springs #17 Brannon(?) alone in a seam at box top arc left, with #1 Montenegro charging out. Brannon tries to flick under/around Montenegro, glancing save, ball emerges and rolls toward left post. #5 Leslie Fareaux chases it down to 6-top, hoofs it wide left and over.
90+1' (of 1') 0-6 USA sieges box top, pass left-to-right. Entry pass to 15m 6-right, could have shot but felt no need. Spins and drives endline, Panama slide-tackle not clean, both go down and pop up. Ball escapes, rolls over. Ref is not in the giving vein today. FT. Gulf in class.
yeap, it looks like the loser of USA - Mexico should have not problem securing the 3rd Concacaf spot.
[USA-MEX] Interpolating possible starters. USA played 4-3-3 in all 3 group games, and rotated the whole roster in. The CAN-MEX last group match was probably the 1st team for both sides, given the higher stakes; hence Mexico will probably be very similar to that. Will update before gametime. USA (Steve Swanson): [LINEUP-4-3-3] 7 Ohai/9 Ubogagu, 14 Sten./11 Hor., 20 Hayes/13 Capelle , 12 DiBer./15 Mewis, 6 Brian/8 Johnston, 16 Killion/10 Laddish , 2 Path./19 Amack, 5 Kallman, 3 Rocc./17 Bran., 4 Dunn , 1 B.Heaberlin/18 A.Smith [/LINEUP-4-3-3] Mexico (Roberto Gerardo Medina Arellano): [lineup-4-4-2] 11 Chrystal Martínez, 9 Tanya Samarzich , 6d Olivia Jiménez, 7 Nayeli Rangel, 8d Ariana Martínez, 10 Natalia Gómez , 3 Bianca Sierra, 4 Christina Murillo, 15 Alejandra Amador, 2 Arianna Romero , 1 Aurora Cecilia Santiago Cisneros [/lineup-4-4-2] Full Mexican names are so charming Mexico's GK is "A. Santiago" on CONCACAF's roster and match pages, but as "Cecilia" on TV (and maybe "Cecily" for daily use). She appears both ways on US Soccer's preview page: - as "1-Cecilia Santiago" 2012/03/06 for Mexico's most recent match, vs. Canada; - as "1-Aurora Santiago" 2010/01/30 for the most recent USA-MEX W-20 match. That wasn't an elder sister, that was her.
05' 0-0 Underway, and still no MatchTracker. #13 Briana Lopez chases long into right corner, #5 Kallman taps square toward #13 Roccaro(?) -- dies in grass, suddenly a 50-50 at 6-right foot! Lopez waffles it/deflected, easy pop-up for #1 Heaberlin(?). Mexico did make some changes.
08' 0-0 USA through box 6-top left wide, #7 Ohai chases it down. Holds at box left, cross blocked high, back to her. She dribbles to 6-top left, curls shot face-high, #1 Santiago catches. 09' 0-0 USA into box 14m 6-left, cross square to #11 Horan(?), shot stuff-blocked on her foot. Squirts wide left, #6 Brian(?) cross sliding-blocked over. USA left corner, to 7m center, #1 Santiago punches way out. Frenetic pace. USA buzzing like a tank of trout at feeding time.
12' 1-0 USA through box top arc left, #14 Stengel rides off a challenge, chases ball perpendicularly to endline. Gathers at 1.5m, cuts endline to juke a slide, ball half-over -- she hooks a cross rising, just misses #1 Santiago's face. #11 Horan at 3m center lets it go, bounces to 4m past right post. #8 Johnston lines up shot, roofs inside right post. 14' 1-0 USA long shot on grass through arc left, #1 Santiago plenty of time, dives and palms it over. USA left corner, Santiago punches clear.
USA (Steve Swanson): [LINEUP-4-3-3] 7 Kealia Ohai, 14 Katie Stengel, 11 Lindsey Horan , 6 Morgan Brian, 16 Sarah Killion, 8 Julie Johnston , 2 Mollie Pathman, 5 Kassey Kallman, 3 Cari Roccaro, 4 Crystal Dunn , 1 Bryane Heaberlin [/LINEUP-4-3-3]
20' 1-0 USA possess and probe with slightly more patience. 21' 1-0 USA throw-in behind own midfield left, Mexico pressure forces bad backpass and square into USA's own box top center -- an exciting clash, both sides claim extracurriculars, USA clears. 23' 1-0 USA to box top left, slices shot wide left behind net. 24' 1-0 Mexico #13 Lopez pressures #3 Roccaro(?) at 30m box left, dogged footwork causes a poke-away. #5 Kallman comes inside-out across the field, clears up, dribbles to right touch, USA regroup.