United States vs. Panama
International Friendly
State Farm Stadium — Glendale
January 27 — 8 pm ET
WATCH: ESPN2, UniMás, UDN
A month after being named coach of the US men’s national team, Gregg Berhalter will make his anticipated debut in the first international friendly of 2019 against Panama Sunday (8 pm ET | ESPN2, UniMás, UDN) from State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.
It is the first of two friendlies during the team’s January camp with the USMNT taking on Concacaf rival Honduras on Feb. 2 from Avaya Stadium in San Jose. Matches against Ecuador and Chile follow in March.
“We’ve had a great two weeks in Chula Vista focusing on building team culture, style of play and competing every day,” Berhalter said. “The entire group has worked hard and brought an excellent mindset, and we thank them for the consistent effort thus far. We look forward to continuing to build on these ideas in Phoenix and measure our progress in the game against Panama.”
- Who will stand out in Berhalter's debut as head coach?
- Doyle: Predicting USMNT approach & XI vs. Panama
- Warshaw: What you should be watching for on Sunday
- USMNT to host Chile on March 26 in Houston
- Doyle: Making sense of Berhalter's US cuts
- Berhalter trims USMNT roster to 23 for friendlies
- Hamid on four GKs in USMNT camp: "I'm better"
- Canouse making a claim for Berhalter's XI
- FC Cincy's Garza suffers quad injury in USMNT camp
- Rosenberry hopes US camp is springboard this time
- D.C.'s Arriola believes he fits Berhalter's system
- Berhalter announces his USMNT technical staff
- Take a peek inside Berhalter's 1st week of camp
- Quakes' Lima aims to step up for club, country
- Zardes eager to thrive under Berhalter again
- Berhalter to USMNT: Keep an open mind on approach
- "Small steps" lead to big results for RBNY's Long
- USMNT January camp kicks off Steffen's big year
- Berhalter lays out rationale for first US roster
- Lletget sees "bright future" for both US, Galaxy
United States Outlook
After inviting 28 players into his first January camp, Berhalter on Tuesday announced his 23-man roster to take on Panama and Honduras.
Goalkeepers Alex Bono from Toronto FC and LAFC’sTyler Miller, Real Salt Lake defender Justen Glad and Colorado Rapids midfielder Kellyn Acosta were the four left off the roster. FC Cincinnati defender Greg Garza also misses out after suffering a quadriceps injury during the camp.
Among those seeking their first senior national team cap are defenders Daniel Lovitz of the Montreal Impact, the Philadelphia Union duo of Mark McKenzie and Auston Trusty, Keegan Rosenberry of the Colorado Rapids, midfielders Russell Canouse of D.C. United, NYCFC’sJonathan Lewis, Djordje Mihailovic from the Chicago Fire and forwards Jeremy Ebobisse from the Portland Timbers and LAFC’s Christian Ramirez.
Panama Outlook
Gary Stempel is back in charge of Panama, at least in the interim basis, as Los Canaleros get set for their first international friendly of 2019. The Panamanian-English manager previously guided Panama in 2008 and 2009, in addition to coaching youth national and club teams in Panama.
Stempel has called a youthful 18-man roster together for the friendly, exclusively comprised of domestic-based players. Only seven players have previously suited up for Panama, including Abdiel Arroyo and former New York Red Bulls defender Fidel Escobar, who were part of the 2018 FIFA World Cup squad.
History
The United States hold a 12-1-6 all-time advantage against Panama dating back to 1993. There were four consecutive 1-1 draws before the USMNT cruised to a 4-0 victory in World Cup qualifying on Oct. 6, 2017 in Orlando.
Players to Watch
United States — Jonathan Lewis: It’s unclear if Lewis will be in Berhalter’s first starting XI or if he’ll even come off the bench, but it will be interesting to see what the speedy New York City FC winger can do on the international stage. NYCFC fans have been shouting from the rooftops to get the 21-year-old more MLS playing time. He had a goal and three assists in 14 appearances (219 total minutes) for the Cityzens last year.
Panama — Fidel Escobar: At 24, Escobar represents the present and the future of the Panamanian national team. He’s also searching for a new club after the Red Bulls declined his loan option a month ago. No doubt the center back will be highly motivated to put in a shift that could earn him a new club. While rarely stepping on the field for New York, Escobar’s best play has been with Panama, including some impressive performances in the World Cup.
United States Roster
Pos. |
Player |
Club |
Caps/Goals |
---|---|---|---|
GK |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/sean-johnson">Sean Johnson</a> |
New York City FC |
5/0 |
GK |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/zack-steffen">Zack Steffen</a> |
Columbus Crew SC |
6/0 |
D |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/reggie-cannon">Reggie Cannon</a> |
FC Dallas |
2/0 |
D |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/nick-lima">Nick Lima</a> |
San Jose Earthquakes |
0/0 |
D |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/aaron-long">Aaron Long</a> |
New York Red Bulls |
2/0 |
D |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/daniel-lovitz">Daniel Lovitz</a> |
Montreal Impact |
0/0 |
D |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/mark-mckenzie">Mark McKenzie</a> |
Philadelphia Union |
0/0 |
D |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/keegan-rosenberry">Keegan Rosenberry</a> |
Colorado Rapids |
0/0 |
D |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/auston-trusty">Auston Trusty</a> |
Philadelphia Union |
0/0 |
D |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/walker-zimmerman">Walker Zimmerman</a> |
LAFC |
4/1 |
M |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/paul-arriola">Paul Arriola</a> |
D.C. United |
17/2 |
M |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/corey-baird">Corey Baird</a> |
Real Salt Lake |
0/0 |
M |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/michael-bradley">Michael Bradley</a> |
Toronto FC |
142/17 |
M |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/russell-canouse">Russell Canouse</a> |
D.C. United |
0/0 |
M |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/marky-delgado">Marky Delgado</a> |
Toronto FC |
6/0 |
M |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/jonathan-lewis">Jonathan Lewis</a> |
New York City FC |
0/0 |
M |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/sebastian-lletget">Sebastian Lletget</a> |
LA Galaxy |
5/1 |
M |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/djordje-mihailovic">Djordje Mihailovic</a> |
Chicago Fire |
0/0 |
M |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/cristian-roldan">Cristian Roldan</a> |
Seattle Sounders FC |
5/0 |
M |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/wil-trapp">Wil Trapp</a> |
Columbus Crew SC |
11[/0 |
F |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/jeremy-ebobisse">Jeremy Ebobisse</a> |
Portland Timbers |
0/0 |
F |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/christian-ramirez">Christian Ramirez</a> |
LAFC |
0/0 |
F |
<a href="https://www.mlssoccer.com/players/gyasi-zardes">Gyasi Zardes</a> |
Columbus Crew SC |
40/6 |
Panama Roster
Pos. |
Player |
Club |
Caps/Goals |
---|---|---|---|
GK |
Orlando Mosquera |
Tauro |
0/0 |
GK |
Eddie Roberts |
CAI La Chorrera |
0/0 |
D |
Iván Anderson |
Tauro |
0/0 |
D |
Guillermo Benítez |
Plaza Amador |
0/0 |
D |
Fidel Escobar |
Unattached |
31/1 |
D |
José Garibaldi |
Arabe Unido |
0/0 |
D |
Édgar Góndola |
Costa del Este |
0/0 |
D |
Francisco Palacios |
San Francisco FC |
3/0 |
M |
Rolando Botello |
Tauro |
2/0 |
D |
Omar Browne |
CAI La Chorrera |
2/0 |
D |
Luis Cañate |
Arabe Unido |
0/0 |
D |
Adalberto Carrasquilla |
Tauro |
3/0 |
M |
Carlos Harvey |
Tauro |
0/0 |
M |
Ángel Orelién |
Sporting San Miguelito |
1/0 |
M |
Edson Samms |
Costa del Este |
0/0 |
M |
Ernesto Walker |
Plaza Amador |
0/0 |
F |
Abdiel Arroyo |
Unattached |
39/6 |
F |
Ernesto Sinclair |
Costa del Este |
0/0 |