USMNT clashes with Panama in World Cup Qualifying on Tuesday

CHICAGO (Via U.S. Soccer) – Coming off a resounding 6-0 victory against Honduras on Friday, the U.S. Men’s National Team resumes the Final Round of 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualifying with another crucial clash away to Panama on Tuesday, March 28 at Estadio Rommell Fernandez in Panama City. Coverage of USA-Panama begins at 10 p.m. ET on beIN Sports, Telemundo and NBC Universo.

U.S. ROSTER BY POSITION (Club; WCQ Caps/Goals):
GOALKEEPERS (3): David Bingham (San Jose Earthquakes; 0/0), Tim Howard (Colorado Rapids; 34/0), Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake; 0/0)

DEFENDERS (8): DaMarcus Beasley (Houston Dynamo; 33/6), Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City; 10/1), Geoff Cameron (Stoke City/ENG; 20/2), Omar Gonzalez (Pachuca/MEX; 13/0), Tim Ream (Fulham/ENG; 3/0), Jorge Villafaña (Santos Laguna/MEX; 1/0), Walker Zimmerman (FC Dallas; 0/0), Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City; 16/3)

MIDFIELDERS (9): Kellyn Acosta (FC Dallas; 1/0), Paul Arriola (Club Tijuana/MEX; 1/1), Alejandro Bedoya (Philadelphia Union; 7/0), Michael Bradley (Toronto FC/CAN; 32/6), Jermaine Jones (LA Galaxy; 16/0), Sacha Kljestan (New York Red Bulls; 18/2), Dax McCarty (Chicago Fire; 0/0), Darlington Nagbe (Portland Timbers; 4/0), Christian Pulisic (Borussia Dortmund/GER; 6/3)

FORWARDS (3): Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC/CAN; 35/16), Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders FC; 37/17), Chris Wondolowski (San Jose Earthquakes; 0/0)

MATCHDAY 3 SCHEDULE

Tuesday, March 28 Time/TV
Honduras vs. Costa Rica 5 p.m. ET
Trinidad & Tobago vs. Mexico 7 p.m. ET (beIN Sports)
Panama vs. USA 10 p.m. ET (beIN Sports, Telemundo, NBC Universo)

STORYLINES

#GOT3
Entering Friday’s match against Honduras with zero points from its first two Final Round World Cup Qualifiers, the U.S. answered the call to get three points in a resounding way, using a Clint Dempsey hat trick as well as strikes from Sebastian Lletget, Michael Bradley and Christian Pulisic to earn an emphatic 6-0 win . The six-goal win set a record for largest margin of victory in the Final Round since the current qualifying format was set by CONCACAF for the 1998 FIFA World Cup and also serves as the MNT’s biggest win against Los Catrachos through 24 all-time meetings.

CLINT DEMPSEY CHASING MILESTONES
After recovering from an irregular heartbeat, Clint Dempsey made a storybook return to the MNT, recording an impressive hat trick to lead the USA past Honduras 6-0. With his three goals, Dempsey re-took the crown as the MNT’s all-time leading scorer in World Cup Qualifying with 17. The hat trick also pulled his overall international goal total to 55, putting him just two back of Landon Donovan to also become the USA’s all-time leading goal scorer. After Friday’s match, Dempsey spoke at length about his return and desire to continue helping the team in its quest to qualify for an eighth-straight FIFA World Cup.

STATEMENT WIN FOR THE MNT
Playing its first World Cup Qualifier since November’s 4-0 defeat at Costa Rica as well as the first competitive match under new head coach Bruce Arena, multiple MNT players said that the 6-0 victory was a statement win for the team .

“It’s the first step in terms of getting ourselves back in a good position in the table,” MNT captain Michael Bradley said post-game. “We’ve waited a long time for tonight, especially given the way the two games went in November. I thought across the board, every guy stepped on the field tonight with the right mentality, ready to give everything to make sure we walked off the field with three points.”

#GET3MORE
Winning against Honduras was only part of the equation for the MNT’s March World Cup Qualifying set. The team now travels on the road to Panama, looking to #Get3More points to bring their Final Round total to sixheading into June’s matches vs. Trinidad & Tobago and Mexico. After starting camp in last place in the six-team Final Round qualifying group, depending on other results Tuesday, a win could see the MNT climb as high as second by the end of the night.

ROSTER CHANGES ANNOUNCED
Following the win against Honduras, Club Tijuana winger Paul Arriola was added to the MNT roster , while Sebastian Lletget (left foot), John Brooks (illness), Jordan Morris (right foot) and Michael Orozco (right knee) returned to clubs due to injury. With the changes, the U.S. MNT roster stands at 23 players heading into Tuesday’s match.

JERMAINE JONES ELIGIBLE FOR PANAMA
After serving a one-match suspension due to yellow-card accumulation, Jermaine Jones is eligible for selection Tuesday vs. Panama. The 2014 World Cup veteran said this week that he was encouraged by the team’s performance against Honduras and is ready to contribute Tuesday vs. Panama.

GAME-BY-GAME: USA-PANAMA ALL-TIME WCQ HISTORY
The U.S. has met Panama in six World Cup Qualifiers during two different cycles. A brief rundown of every qualifying match between the two nations:

EXPERIENCE A PLENTY
The U.S. MNT roster features 18 players with previous World Cup Qualifying experience. A total of 11 players have 10 or more World Cup Qualifying appearances while five of those have played in more than 30 previous qualifiers and sit in the top six of the MNT’s all-time qualifying caps list behind only Landon Donovan (40): Clint Dempsey (37; second all-time), Jozy Altidore (35; third), Tim Howard (34 each; fourth), DaMarcus Beasley (33; fifth) and Michael Bradley (32; sixth).

TRIO RETURNS
The U.S. will be boosted by the return of three veteran players from the injury list. After being sidelined due to an irregular heartbeat, Clint Dempsey rejoins the MNT for the first time since last June’s Copa America Centenario. Tim Howard is also back after recovering from an adductor fracture during November’s 2-1 World Cup Qualifying defeat against Mexico. Having recovered from an MCL strain while playing for Stoke City, Geoff Cameron returns to the USA roster for the first time since a 2-0 friendly win at Cuba on Oct. 7, 2016, in Havana.

USA-PANAMA NOTES

• The U.S. Men’s National Team holds an 11-1-4 all-time advantage against Panama and has gone 3-0-1 in Panama City.
• The MNT is an unbeaten 5-0-1 against Panama in World Cup Qualifying and 2-0-1 when playing at Estadio Rommel Fernandez
• Bruce Arena managed against Panama five times during his first tenure in charge of the MNT, going 3-0-2.
• Arena led the MNT to its first win on Panamanian soil, using first-half goals from Brian McBride, Carlos Bocanegra and Landon Donovan and a big performance in goal from Kasey Keller to earn a 3-0 victory on June 8, 2005.
• The U.S. also won in its last visit to Panama on Oct. 15, 2013. Trailing 2-1 in the 82^nd minute, the MNT rallied with two stoppage-time goals from Graham Zusi and Aron Johannsson to win 3-2, knocking Los Canaleros out of a fourth-place finish which would have sent them into an Intercontinental Playoff against New Zealand for a berth in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
• Set to face Panama once again during this summer’s CONCACAF Gold Cup, the U.S. has twice defeated the Central American nation in the tournament’s championship game, winning on penalty kicks following win the 2005 crown and earning a 1-0 win to lift the trophy in 2013.
• Panama’s only win against the United States came via a 2-1 victory during the CONCACAF Gold Cup Group Stage on June 11, 2011.

USA ROSTER NOTES:

• The roster features 18 players who have previous World Cup Qualifying experience and 11 who have represented the USA at a FIFA World Cup.
• A total of 11 players on the roster have 10 or more World Cup Qualifying appearances, while five of those have played in more than 30 previous qualifiers and sit in the top six of the MNT’s all-time qualifying caps list behind only Landon Donovan (40): Clint Dempsey (36; second all-time), Jozy Altidore, DaMarcus Beasley and Tim Howard (33 each; tied for third all-time), and Michael Bradley (31; tied for sixth all-time).
• Defender Jorge Villafaña logged 90 minutes in his World Cup Qualifying debut on Friday against Honduras.
• After serving a one-game suspension vs. Honduras, midfielder Jermaine Jones is available for selection against Panama.
• Four players on the roster are carrying yellow cards into the match: Jozy Altidore, Matt Besler, Michael Bradley and Geoff Cameron. Recently departed defender John Brooks also has a yellow card.
• Eleven players have made previous World Cup Qualifying appearances against Panama: Dempsey (three), Jozy Altidore, DaMarcus Beasley and Tim Howard (two each), Alejandro Bedoya, Matt Besler, Michael Bradley, Geoff Cameron, Omar Gonzalez, Sacha Kljestan and Graham Zusi (one each).
• Six players have made away World Cup Qualifying appearances vs. Panama: Dempsey (2), Altidore, Beasley, Bedoya, Kljestan and Zusi.
• Altidore and Zusi have scored against Panama in World Cup Qualifying.
• Zusi has twice scored at Estadio Rommel Fernandez, tallying the game-tying goal in the MNT’s 3-2 World Cup Qualifying win vs. Panama on Oct. 15, 2013 and the lone goal in the USA’s 1-0 friendly win on Jan. 25, 2012.
• Altidore tallied to give the MNT a 2-0 win against Panama on June 18, 2013 in Seattle.
• Dempsey and Bradley each have two career goals against Panama.
• Five players on the roster are still looking to make their World Cup Qualifying debuts: goalkeepers David Bingham and Nick Rimando, defender Walker Zimmerman, midfielder Dax McCarty and forward Chris Wondolowski.

PANAMA ROSTER:
GOALKEEPERS (3) : Jaime Penedo (Dinamo Bucharest), Jose Calderon (Real Cartagena)
DEFENDERS (8) : Roman Torres (Seattle Sounders), Felipe Baloy (Tauro), Harold Cummings (San Jose Earthquakes), Amir Murillo (New York Red Bulls), Luis Ovalle (Zamora), Adolfo Machado (Houston Dynamo), Fidel Escobar (Sporting Lisbon B), Erick Davis (Dunajska Streda)
MIDFIELDERS (9) : Anibal Godoy (San Jose Earthquakes), Armando Cooper (Toronto FC), Miguel Camargo (NYCFC), Ricardo Avila (Koper), Edgar Barcenas (Tapachula), Gabriel Gomez (Atletico Bucaramanga), Amilcar Henriquez (Arabe Unido), Josiel Nunez (Plaza Amador), Alberto Quintero (Universitario)
FORWARDS (5) : Blas Perez (Blooming), Abdiel Arroyo (Danubio), Luis Tejada (Universitario), Tony Taylor (Pacos de Ferreira), Gabriel Torres (Lausanne Sport)

PANAMA NOTES

• Panama enters Matchday 4 sitting in third place with four points (1-1-1). Los Canaleros opened the Final Round of World Cup Qualifying with a 1-0 win at Honduras on Nov. 11 before playing to a 0-0 draw at home vs. Mexico four days later. On Friday, they fell 1-0 away to Trinidad & Tobago.
• Panama is managed by former Colombia, Ecuador and Guatemala head coach Hernán Darío Gómez.
• The Panama roster features current Seattle Sounders FC captain Román Torres, as well as fellow defenders Adolfo Machado (Houston Dynamo) and Amir Murillo (New York Red Bulls). In midfield, is Jozy Altidore and Michael Bradley’s Toronto FC teammate Armando Cooper, San Jose Earthquakes star Aníbal Godoy and New York City FC’s Miguel Camargo.
• Now based with Dynamo Bucharest in Romania, goalkeeper Jaime Penedo played parts of three seasons under current MNT head coach Bruce Arena with the LA Galaxy, while forward Blas Pérez spent time with FC Dallas and Vancouver Whitecaps FC. Former U.S. youth international Tony Taylor also played for New England Revolution and New York City FC.