Soccer fans, there is much to get to.  Let’s get started and wrap up the week.

First, let us finish what we started: the Gold Cup

 I’m happy to report that I’m heading to Chicago to attend the Gold Cup 2013 finals.  Although I was cheering for Mexico to make it to the finals I don’t think their current team deserves to be anywhere close to the Soldier Field gates.

So what should we be expecting during this game?

About Panama:

There are several players on that team who deserve our attention:  Blaz Perez, Gabriel Torres and Alberto Quintero.  Of that pack, one that particularly stood out for me is Quintero.  This is a player who displays great quality over the ball, acute ability to read the game and who can match the appropriate speed to Panama’s counter attack style.  As a midfielder he has the ability to feed Torres and Blaz and on occasion finish his own play. If I were to pick the five best players of the tournament Quintero certainly would have made my list.  While Panama was not a clear choice to be in that position from my predictions, let me say this about this team; they had a “Spectacular Run”!  Kudos to the team and the spirit with which they played the tournament and to the coaches who seemed to find a formula to win against worthy opponents!!

So how should they approach this game?  Panama cannot afford to play an offensive minded game as they played against other opponents.  They are too vulnerable in the back to afford midfielders to leave the defensive duties to the back line. They must be compact and disciplined to avoid early goals. If they can start the game without conceding a goal in the first 15 minutes, they will have a chance at developing their own game.

About the US:

I’m delighted by the US team’s last performance against Honduras. This is a team who’s been playing with tons of confidence and a disciplined back and Honduras came in as a real test.   Jurgen Klinsman is definitely on to something. It’s hard to judge how well a team is doing when every other game is a different line up.  Regardless of that fact, the US is one flying and impressive scoring machine.

How could I talk about the US and not mention Donovan’s spectacular contribution to this tournament?  In fact...I’m not so sure what the fuss was about, Donovan had proven again and again that he is the best homegrown quality player the US ever produced. Beyond this distinction, I believe him to be the MVP of this tournament by a thousand miles. He has been clearly above the pack and displayed qualities both in his scoring and passing game that are off the charts! In conclusion, I’m expecting them to win this tournament as a superior team that has shown maturity throughout.