By Rory Carroll
(Reuters) – The United States face Panama in their second group-stage match of the Copa America on Thursday and while they have historically enjoyed the upper hand against their fellow CONCACAF side, players are taking nothing for granted.
A victory would send the U.S. through to the knockout round following their 2-0 win over Bolivia in Sunday’s opener and would take the pressure off their final group match against Uruguay.
As an added incentive the U.S. have the opportunity to avenge their loss on penalties to Los Canaleros in the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup semi-finals, a memory still fresh in their minds.
“They beat us in the Gold Cup semi-final last year with a pretty good performance,” U.S. goalkeeper Matt Turner told reporters.
“They bring man-to-man pressure, they’re a team that has a lot of really talented players and athletes. We’re expecting a physical game, really competitive.
“We know how good Panama is and it’s going to be a real test for us.”
Despite the stinging Gold Cup loss, the U.S. enjoys a dominant 17-2-7 record all-time against the Central American side.
They will look to build on their win over Bolivia, where they got off to a flying start with first-half goals by Christian Pulisic and Folarin Balogun but were held scoreless after the break.
Urging them on will be a large and raucous crowd at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which is home to Major League Soccer (MLS) side Atlanta United.
“It feels good to be in Atlanta,” Turner said.
“I’ve played in MLS for a number of years and this is one of the away games you really didn’t ever want to play, especially when they first came into the league.”
Atlanta United broke attendance records when the team joined the North American league in 2017, establishing the city as a hotbed for soccer fandom in the U.S.
The U.S. soccer federation’s first-ever national training centre will open in the greater Atlanta area in 2026.
“We know that the fan turnout at Mercedes-Benz is really good and we’re hoping to see some of that and feel that energy from the crowd on Thursday night,” Turner said.
(Reporting by Rory Carroll in Los Angeles; editing by Clare Fallon)
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