It finished Panama 2, U.S. 1, on Thursday night in Atlanta. And it left the Americans likely needing to beat Uruguay, one of the tournament favorites, in their Group C finale on Monday to avoid elimination.
They played over 75 minutes of the game with 10 men after Tim Weah’s early red card changed the entire dynamic of the match.
For most of the second half, they appeared to be hanging on for a draw and a somewhat valuable point. But in the 83rd minute, Panama's José Fajardo broke the American resistance, and propelled Panama to a famous, euphoric win.
The game was scrappy, physical and CONCACAF-y from opening whistle to final whistle. It was an "emotional roller coaster," U.S. midfielder Tyler Adams said. It almost swung five minutes in, when Weston McKennie scored to seemingly put the USMNT ahead. But, upon video review, Tim Ream had been offside in the scruffy buildup to the goal, and VAR disallowed it.
Ten minutes after that, the game did change for good. As it heated up, Weah overheated. After a bit of jostling off the ball, he lashed out at Panamanian defender Roderick Miller with his hand, and caught Miller in the head. He was initially shown a yellow card. But referee Ivan Barton needed only one look at the replay on his pitchside monitor to change the color of the card to red.
Weah didn’t argue. As he walked off the field, he pulled his jersey over his face. He knew he’d erred. He later apologized to teammates, Adams said.
“Obviously, moving forward, we need to control our emotions in certain situations," Adams told Fox.
The red card left the U.S. disadvantaged for 70-plus minutes. Those 70-plus minutes, though, began with a bang. Folarin Balogun picked out the top corner with his left foot, and put the U.S. ahead.
But three minutes after the game restarted, Panama equalized, and the U.S. was back to square one — down a man, without a lead, and with more than half a game to endure.
For the rest of the first half, the Yanks wobbled, and scrambled to keep the score at 1-1.
In the second half, they essentially conceded that this would be a difficult game to win; so they slowed it down, and tried to shut up shop with a point in hand.
Head coach Gregg Berhalter made three halftime changes. One was for Matt Turner, who gutted through an injury after a first-half collision, but couldn’t continue after the break. (In fact, his injury might have impacted his ability to keep out Panama’s goal.)
The other two substitutions, Cameron Carter-Vickers and Johnny Cardoso for Tyler Adams and Gio Reyna, set the U.S. up to play the rest of the game in a deep, uber-defensive 5-3-1.
And for a while, it worked. The second half was more calm. It was tense, but less chaotic; for 30-plus minutes, Panama hardly threatened.
But then, as U.S. legs tired, Panama took advantage. When Fajardo's goal hit the roof of the net, Panamanian subs streamed down the sideline in ecstasy and U.S. shoulders slumped.
A late Panama red card — to Adalberto "Coco" Carrasquilla, who hacked down Christian Pulisic from behind — reduced the game to 10-on-10, and gave the U.S. a glimmer of hope.
But it fizzled with a few wayward attacks, and disappeared with the final whistle.
And just like that, in a group that seemed so straightforward, the Americans are arguably underdogs. Berhalter's job is probably on the line. And pressure, overwhelming pressure, is on the hosts of this Copa América.
It got a bit lost in the craziness of the 15 minutes that followed ... but here's the angle of the Tim Weah incident that referee Iván Barton looked at and immediately thought: That's a red card.
Does the angle and the Panamanian reaction make it look worse than it actually was? Maybe. But either way, it was really stupid. And Weah, after the video review, looked like he knew it was stupid.
The USMNT can still win this game. But it's worth considering the context of Group C, and the implications of a draw.
Assuming Uruguay beats Bolivia later tonight, Panama is the only team that could keep the U.S. out of the knockout rounds.
So, this is a six-pointer. For the U.S., a draw wouldn't just be a point; it would deny Panama two points. And the only Matchday 3 scenario where Panama could beat the U.S. to second place in the group would be if Panama beats Bolivia, the U.S. loses to Uruguay, and Panama makes up a four-goal deficit in goal differential.
Henry Bushnell
USMNT needs to settle
The U.S. is scrambling a bit now. Can't keep possession. Defenders getting twisted and turned around. Panama has had multiple half-chances for a second goal.
Down a man, the Americans won't be able to control this game like they would've hoped to. But they need to pick and choose their moments to keep the ball, and their moments to sit in a defensive block. This is unsustainable for 60 more minutes.
Henry Bushnell
... and Panama answers. 1-1.
César Blackman scores for Panama. And just like that, all the positive vibes stemming from Balogun's goal are gone.
1-0 to the U.S.! Folarin Balogun, what a goal, out of nowhere!
Henry Bushnell
Tim Weah sent off!
Wow.
Tim Weah initially picked up a yellow card for some sort of contact off the ball.
Upon video review, it was something between a slap and a punch. The referee took one quick look at the video, after VAR recommended he go to the monitor, and immediately decided to change the yellow to a red.
Weah hardly argued. He knew what he'd done.
U.S. will play 75-plus minutes 10 vs. 11. Big challenge.
Panama's César Blackman just clattered into Matt Turner as Turner went to catch a cross, and the U.S. goalkeeper needed treatment.
Bad collision. Ethan Horvath, the backup U.S. goalkeeper, is warming up. Turner seems like he'll be able to stay in, but it could be the type of impact injury that limits him. He seemed to feel pain in his right shoulder, but the medical staff was focused on his upper left leg.
Adalberto "Coco" Carrasquilla is the Panamanian player to watch. He's the only one in red capable of dictating this game a bit from midfield. The U.S. will be wary of giving him time on the ball.
Henry Bushnell
An early U.S. goal ruled out by VAR
Weston McKennie scored after a scramble in the box.
But on an initial header from Chris Richards — which was saved off the post — Tim Ream, who was next to touch the ball, was offside.
The U.S. started really strong against Bolivia in the opener. It wasn't just Pulisic's goal; they played with a lot of intensity and ambition.
Will it happen again?
Yahoo Sports Staff
If last week's Argentina/Messi match was SEC championship-level crowd and volume at Mercedes-Benz, this USMNT-Panama one is the crowd equivalent of early-season Falcons-Panthers.
At kickoff tonight, don't expect a full house, for a few reasons:
There appear to be plenty of tickets available, as of a few minutes ago:
(Screenshot: Ticketmaster)
A 6 p.m. start on a weekday, in a city always slowed by traffic, is far from ideal.
There's a presidential debate tonight a couple miles from Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. Traffic is even worse than usual. Many of those who did shell out for tickets won't make it to their seats by 6 p.m.
Yahoo Sports Staff
Cheers from the Mercedes-Benz Stadium crowd for every member of the #USMNT starting lineup, audible boos for Gregg Berhalter. #CopaAmerica
— U.S. Soccer Men's National Team (@USMNT) June 27, 2024
Yahoo Sports Staff
"We definitely just want to keep a level head and realize what's important and what the bigger stake is."@JennyTaft speaks with USMNT's Weston McKennie about what they can expect from familiar opponent Panama ⬇️🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/P33S4pPWoU
That stat is a tad deceiving, though. The U.S. was largely unchanged, but for one or two tweaks and injuries, at the 2022 World Cup.
The precedent is relevant, because in Qatar, the USMNT seemed to run out of gas in game No. 4. Is Berhalter going down the same path again 18 months later?
If the U.S. beats Panama, and if Uruguay beats or draws Bolivia, and if Group D results fall into place, the U.S.-Uruguay group finale becomes relatively meaningless — so that could be an opportunity for Berhalter to rotate and rest tired legs. But Uruguay is also the best team in the group; would it really make sense to shy away from the showdown?
We'll see — if, first things first, the U.S. takes care of business tonight.
Henry Bushnell
Stage is set for USMNT-Panama
In what is clearly the biggest event happening Thursday evening in downtown Atlanta, the U.S. and Panama are set to duel at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
On paper, it looks straightforward. By the end of the night, the USMNT should have a place booked in the 2024 Copa América quarterfinals.
In reality, it's fútbol. Anything can happen. And Panama knows this U.S. team well. This should be a tougher test than Bolivia offered last weekend.
Yahoo Sports Staff
Welcome to Yahoo Sports and our live coverage of today's Copa América match between the U.S. men's national team and Panama. Kickoff is scheduled for shortly after 6 p.m. ET. Here's the lineup for the USMNT:
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