Copa America 2024 hosts, USA, failed to build on their winning start to the campaign as they collapsed to a shock 2-0 loss to Panama in their second match in Group C, MySportDab reports.
The Stripes and Stars had opened their campaign with a 2-0 victory over Bolivia and needed a win against Panama to seal qualification to the next round of the tournament but their luck failed to shine through at the Mercedes Benz Stadium.
However, it was a bright start for the Greg Berhalter-led team. They dominated proceedings and were looking set to ace the fixture before their spirited start screeched to a halt.
Weah was handed a red card, reducing the hosts to a one-man numerical disadvantage. Despite the setback, Folarin Balogun scored four minutes later to give the team the lead but it was a matter of time before Panama leveraged on their numerical advantage and claw their charges back into the game.
Four minutes after Folarin Balogun’s opener for the hosts, Panama fought back through Blackman in the 26th minute to even the scores.
Blackman’s equaliser was enough to peg the hosts back to a 1-1 draw before the half-time break.
The second half nearly ended barren but Panama leveraged on their numerical advantage again, scoring seven minutes from regulation time to complete the comeback.
Both sides finished with 10 men after Panama player Carrasquilla was sent off in the 88th minute but it still ended 2-1 in favour of the Group C underdogs.
The result has seen Panama grab their first win in the group after its opening loss to Uruguay. They are third in Group C with 3 points – the same with USA – and will take on Bolivia next in their final group fixture.
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