'We will lose' - Gilma1990, BigSoccer Optimist United States @ Panama Kickoff: 10:10pm ET Stadium: Estadio Rommel Fernandez, Panama City, Panama Broadcast: beINSports; UniMasOverview (from mlssoccer.com) Bruce Arena’s side whipped Honduras 6-0 at Avaya Stadium on Friday night to push a healthy gust of wind back in their sails after November’s dispiriting losses to Mexico and Costa Rica. First among the evening’s many bright spots: Clint Dempsey bagged a hat trick, Jozy Altidore flourished in the No. 9 spot and Christian Pulisic was lively in a central playmaking role. The victory came at a cost, however. Starters Sebastian Lletget and John Brooks picked up knocks that have forced them to return to their clubs. Meanwhile, Jordan Morris and Michael Orozco were unable to shake off pre-existing injuries and have also departed, with Arena calling in Club Tijuana winger Paul Arriola for reinforcements in Panama. Current Standing Roster Goalkeepers (3): David Bingham (San Jose Earthquakes), Tim Howard (Colorado Rapids), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake) Defenders (10): DaMarcus Beasley (Houston Dynamo), Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), Geoff Cameron (Stoke City), Omar Gonzalez (Pachuca), Tim Ream (Fulham), Jorge Villafaña (Santos Laguna), Walker Zimmerman (FC Dallas), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City) Midfielders (9): Kellyn Acosta (FC Dallas), Paul Arriola (Club Tijuana), Alejandro Bedoya (Philadelphia Union), Michael Bradley (Toronto FC), Jermaine Jones (LA Galaxy), Sacha Kljestan (New York Red Bulls), Dax McCarty (Chicago Fire), Darlington Nagbe (Portland Timbers), Christian Pulisic (Borussia Dortmund) Forwards (3): Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC), Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders), Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes) Probable Starting XI
@Susaeta and Matthew Doyle's probable starting XI Notable changes: Villafana >> Beasley Brooks >> Ream Lleget >> Bedoya I'm not sure Beasley should start this match, Villafana did well against Honduras and should not be sat on the bench in place of Beasley, he was comfortable on the ball and made little to no mistakes. Ream was subbed on late in the 2nd half to replace Brooks, who was subbed off because of dehydration, and was organized in the back paired with Gonzalez. However, during the Klinsmann tenure, the original pair of center backs who complimented each other well was Besler and Gonzalez. They were at their best in the hex last World Cup and I believe that there is a good chance we may see this pair to start the game. Bedoya was an early replacement for Lleget, who was subbed off with what was later deemed an ankle injury, and played well for the remainder of the match. He had his moments where he made runs and lost the ball, overall, he was tidy and was instructed to support Bradley in midfield late in the match. He may not start this game but he may be subbed on in the second half to control the match.
Super excited for this one. I have an indoor game tonight at 10:50, so I'll probably be up until 2AM watching lol
I really have no idea what this line up will look like, the success of the last game makes everything more confusing, as traditional logic would dictate a 4-2-3-1 or a bunkerish 4-4-2, but Jozy sucks up top alone, CP in the middle was key to everything and good luck to whoever looks Clint in the eye and tells him he isn't starting. Defensivley I don't get why anyone would think DMB starts, we finally have an actual, competent left back in JV. Gonzo terrifies me, but so does the idea of Zuzi at RB instead of Cameron. I am really concerned that we will play a classic on the road, bunkering type personnell and style and be unable to posess the ball and mount a real attack and with a shaky centerback pairing end up not defending well either. This was always the much tougher game of the two and now with the Brooks and Lleget injuries... In El Bruce we trust.
Honduras is up one nothing on Costa Rica right now. A Costa Rica loss or tie would be huge for us here.
Panama is going to be coming in hot after we ko'ed them last cycle in what was a meaningless game for us. Their annoyance with us at the time showed in their body language. And we seemed to get a plenty spirited performance from them in the subsequent Gold Cup where we drew and lost to them getting out-shot 25-5. Hard to tell though with how that tournament went so badly for us from start to finish. But I wouldn't read much into Panama's loss against T&T. May have been looking forward to this game. Their intensity will probably resemble Costa Rica's in the post snow-bowl game. They got after it. But that aggression leaves holes and tired legs. So have to be prepared to withstand it, bypass, and make them pay on the counter. Then bring in a few subs to exploit their tired players. I'm thinking about Arriola, Acosta, and Dempsey/Kljestan. Too bad about the Morris and Wood injuries. They could have been really valuable in this game, especially in the event of a tie score or if we were up 1. If we need a goal, hopefully we don't see Wondo out there, although he'd avoid being a total goat in his career if he scored it.
Freaking DISH only has BeIN in standard definition. On the other hand BeIN in Spanish which is showing the Brazil vs. Paraguay game at 8:30 PM is in HD.
Wondo is definitely coming in towards the middle of the second half and I would not be at all surprised to see him put in a goal. Jones will be an interesting replacement over Lletget. The look might have to change a bit for that to work but he's capable with a comparable work rate to that of Lletget. All in and very optimistic. #Got3
It seems weird to a cricket fan like me that a West Indian official is reffing a game with a West Indian team. I realize the islands are at opposite ends of the Caribbean but both countries are represented in the same international cricket team.
Same thing on Comcast. That said, the last time the game was on BeIn (English), it magically was in HD. But maybe that was cause the Spanish was already HD and they were showing there as well. There's some hope, I guess. But, right now Mex/T&T is Standard def, which is rough. I'm DVRing Telemundo as well. I prefer Spanish to lo-fi.
Yes, I also prefer HD even if the narration is in Spanish. By the way I don't know why in this day and age so many of these providers still carry all these channels in low definition. I pay top money for DISH, I wish they'd have more HD channels, especially when they are available. What justifies showing a low def one when the channel is also broadcasting in HD??? I don't subscribe to Telemundo so I'm stuck with the low def image.