PHILADELPHIA – Nobody wants to play in a third-place game. It is, by definition, a consolation prize, something to be avoided in pursuit of real hardware.
And yet the United States and Panama find themselves preparing to fight for Gold Cup bronze on Saturday afternoon at PPL Park (4 pm ET; FOX Sports 1, Univision, Sportsnet), a game in which neither wanted to play, but which they'll take seriously all the same.
"To be here in the third-place game for teams that really want to be in the final, there's definitely sadness,” Panama head coach Hernan Dario Gomez told reporters on Friday. “But at the same time, it’s an honor to fight for third place."
Jurgen Klinsmann echoed that sentiment in his own press conference. "Obviously, it’s not the game that we wanted to be in,” he said. "We wanted to win this tournament badly. There’s no doubt about it. But if I look at the tournament overall, it’s maybe not as negative as some think, which I totally understand.”
It’s certainly true that the US, and specifically Klinsmann, have come under heavy criticism after Jamaica upset the Americans 2-1 in Atlanta via set-piece goals from Darren Mattocks and Giles Barnes. The expectation, one explicitly laid out by the German in the lead-up the tournament, was a victory that would eliminate the need for a playoff for CONCACAF’s place in the 2017 Confederation Cup.
Expectations weren’t met – the winner of the final between Jamaica and Mexico will take on the US in October for a place in the World Cup walkthrough in Russia – but that doesn’t mean the US or Panama will put their heads down and sulk on the field.
“Any time you put on the badge and you put on the jersey, it’s a real game,” defender Brad Evans said. “We’re also playing what’s become a rival now in Panama. It’s constantly been a tough game. These guys are going to be hungry, and they’re going to be pissed from their last result as well."
“Reality is for some of us, at the end of the Gold Cup, is this the last run for some guys? Is it not?" he continued. "That’s the thought process in people’s minds.”
One player who may be seeing his time with the US come to an end (again) is DaMarcus Beasley, who came out of international retirement to provide veteran leadership and left-back chops in the knockout stages only to see a calf injury throw a wrench in those plans.
Klinsmann said the veteran Houston Dynamo defender would likely play the second half on Saturday, adding he’d also likely rotate a squad on three-days rest. Beasley, though disappointed his body let him down as the US failed to reach their goals, added that the Americans know only one way to approach the match.
“There’s a game to be won. We’re professionals,” he said. “Yesterday was a time to reflect on the game and be disappointed, be frustrated and have a lot of the bad, negative thoughts in your mind. Today is a new day. I speak for all the players; it’s what we’ve done through all our careers. When there’s a game to play, you want to win. That’s our focus right now, to end this on a high note.”
That would mean a bronze medal, heaping even more misery on a Panama squad that suffered a controversial loss to Mexico in Atlanta and saw their 2014 World Cup dreams end at the hands of the US in October 2013 just months after losing the 2013 Gold Cup to the Americans in Chicago.
Captain Michael Bradley was frank when asked what a bronze would mean to the US – “not much” – but said they’ll do everything in their power to win all the same.
“We have no divine right to win this tournament, to be in the final.” Bradley said, reiterating what he said Wednesday night after the semifinals. “There’s nobody on the inside of this group that thinks that. You start the tournament knowing that it’s going to be a grind and a challenge in every possible way – mentally, physically. Our focus and commitment never wavered, and in the end we play a semifinal against a good team, a team that we can beat.”
