Canada take on the visitors Panama in a Friendly International match. The match will be played on Wednesday, October 16th at BMO Field (Toronto, ON).
Canada played two friendlies in September against much stronger opponents than their current one, Mexico and the USA. They managed to draw with Mexico and even beat the USA. They also participated in the recent Copa América, reaching the semifinals and almost securing a podium finish, but they lost to Uruguay in a penalty shootout. Canada has shown significant progress in recent years, having qualified for the World Cup for the second time in their history. Although they didn’t make a major impact, simply being there is a huge achievement for a country where hockey is the number one sport.
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Just last year, they reached the CONCACAF Gold Cup final. In the Copa América, they were knocked out in the quarterfinals by Colombia, the eventual runners-up. Panama is inconsistent, having played 11 matches in the past year with a streak of alternating results—two wins, two losses, two wins again, and then two more defeats. Their last two matches were also losses. Following this pattern, is Panama due for a win? Not every logical sequence holds up. First of all, both teams consist of about a third of players who play abroad. But Panama’s foreign-based players are with clubs like Khimki, Slovan Bratislava, Strømsgodset, Aktobe, and Ironi Kiryat Shmona—not exactly elite. There are a couple of exceptions: Guerrero plays for Dynamo Kyiv, but under Shovkovskyi, he mostly comes off the bench, or is subbed during the game. Murillo is at Marseille, but his situation is similar to Guerrero’s at Dynamo. Compare that with where Canadian players are based: Marseille (two players), Lille, Auxerre, Nice, Fulham, Porto, Inter Milan, and Bayern Munich—quite the difference, right? Even if they only come off the bench, they gain valuable experience, and clubs of this level wouldn’t sign them even as substitutes if they didn’t have class.
Secondly, Canada has never lost to Panama at home in five meetings, with four wins and one draw. Lastly, the weather. By 8 p.m. in Toronto, the temperature will barely be above freezing, around 5-7°C at most. In Panama, it’s always around 25°C. The Panamanians will freeze - no doubt about it. Based on all of this, I predict that the "Reds" will beat Panama once again.
Prediction for the match: Canada to win.
