Panama World Cup 2018 profile: Best bets, ones to watch and more
Analysing Panama's debut World Cup, looking at their strengths, their route to Russia and their ambitions.
Panama Factfile
- FIFA World Ranking: 55
- Sky Bet outright winner odds: 1000/1
- Best Bet: Panama to score 0 World Cup goals 9/2
- World Cup appearances: 0
- Best World Cup finish: n/a
- Nickname: Los Canaleros (The Canal Men)
Coach - Hernán Darío Gómez: Panama boss Hernán Darío Gómez will be coaching in his third World Cup this summer. The Colombian native led both Ecuador and his home nation at FIFA’s showpiece, being eliminated in the group stages both times.
Legend - Luis Tejada: 35-year-old Luis Tejada is still playing, but he's Panama’s record goal scorer and is regarded as one of their best players ever. He has scored 43 goals in 104 appearances.
Star man - Roman Torres: Torres scored a joint-high two goals in qualification. The centre-back stands at six-foot two-inches and is known for his commanding defensive performances.
Did you know? The Panama Canal is known to be one of the seven modern day wonders of the world.
Fun fact: Panama is unique in the fact that it is said to be one of the only places on earth where you can actually watch both the sun rise on the Pacific and then set again at night on the Atlantic.
Qualifying: Panama finished third in CONCACAF qualification, winning four games, drawing four and losing only two.
Fixtures: Belgium (6pm, 18 June, Fisht Olympic Stadium), England (1pm, 24 Juen Nizhny Novgorad Staidum), Tunisia (7pm, 28 June, Mordovia Arena)
Panama squad
Goalkeepers: Jose Calderon (Chorrillo), Jaime Penedo (Dinamo Bucharest), Alex Rodriguez (San Francisco).
Defenders: Felipe Baloy (Municipal CSD), Harold Cummings (San Jose Earthquakes), Erick Davis (Dunajska Streda), Fidel Escobar, Michael Murillo, Adolfo Machado, Luis Ovalle, Roman Torres (Seattle Sounders).
Midfielders: Jose Luis Rodriguez (Gent), Edgar Barcenas (Cafetaleros de Tapachula), Armando Cooper (Universidad de Chile), Anibal Godoy (San Jose Earthquakes), Gabriel Gomez (Bucaramanga), Valentin Pimentel (Plaza Amador), Alberto Quintero (Universitario).
Forwards: Abdiel Arroyo (Alajuelense), Ismael Diaz (Deportivo La Coruna), Blas Perez (Municipal), Luis Tejada (Sports Boys), Gabriel Torres (CD Huachipato).
Panama Profile
It's 12th time lucky for Panama as they qualified for their first ever World Cup after failing in 11 previous attempts to make the finals.
It'll be a third World Cup for coach Hernán Darío Gómez though as he led Colombia and Ecuador to the tournament, so he can offer his experience to his squad in Russia.
Panama only mustered three wins in their qualifying games with a goal difference of minus one but managed to scrape through in the most dramatic of circumstances.
A goal, which didn't look like it crossed the line, by Blas Perez and a late winner from Roman Torres saw them beat Costa Rica and go through, sparking some of the wildest celebrations ever seen in Panama.
Who to watch out for
Veteran striker Blas Perez has over 100 caps for Panama and he will be charged with trying to find a goal, as will record goalscorer Luis Tejada.
At the back it's Roman Torres who leads the way, with the muscular centre half known as 'the wrestler' due to his imposing physique.
How did they qualify?
Excitement, controversy, just three wins and a negative goal difference - Panama's qualifcation campaign had almost everything.
Their second win over Honduras snapped a six-game winless streak but in what looked a decider they lost to the USA
4-0 and left them hanging on by just a thread.
They had to beat Costa Rica and hope Honduras and America both lost, and while those two sides did suffer defeat, Panama were being held 1-1 by Costa Rica - and even their single goal did not cross the line.
However, in the dying stages, Roman Torres became a national hero with a late-late strike to send them to Russia.
Any interesting facts about Panama?
Panama is one of the only places on earth where you can actually watch both the sun rise on the Pacific and then set again on the Atlantic.
Panama City is known for its beautiful forest landscape within the city.
Panama actually has two independence days after becoming independent from both Spain and then Colombia.
The population of Panama is around 4,000,000, and prides itself upon its nightlife and its culture.
Panama’s currency is actually the US Dollar.
Any famous football moments?
Their most famous footballing moment came in 2017 when they qualified for their first ever FIFA World Cup Finals tournament.
They also finished runners-up in the CONCACAF Gold Cup in 2005 and 2013.
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