The United States men’s national team begins the Mauricio Pochettino era when it hosts Panama in an international friendly at Q2 Stadium in Austin, Texas, on Saturday.
[ LIVE: Watch USMNT vs Panama live en Espanol on Peacock ]
Playing for a new coach and trying to earn a World Cup place on home soil against a team that beat you at Copa America? Motivation should not be an issue for the USMNT come the weekend.
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There are just over 600 days until the 2026 World Cup, when the USMNT will host and face the largest field in tournament history with as good a chance as ever to make a deep run.
That, of course, assumes not too many major injuries. The side is dealing with a load of absences but is fortunate to be blessed with depth in the midfield and out wide. Pochettino will get a week’s look at some players he may not have seen in another window, so these are huge chances for many in the player pool including Lyon’s Tanner Tessman, Leeds’ Brenden Aaronson, and Venezia’s Gianluca Busio.
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How to watch USMNT vs Panama live, stream link and start time
Kickoff time: 9pm ET Saturday (October 12)
Venue: Q2 Stadium in Austin, Texas
How to watch: En Espanol on Universo, Peacock
USMNT vs Panama live updates — By Nick Mendola
USMNT vs Panama live score: 9pm ET kickoff
USMNT vs Panama team news
Weston McKennie and Malik Tillman are mildly surprising omissions from Mauricio Pochettino’s first Starting XI, the former less so than the latter.
Mark McKenzie gets the first chance next to captain Tim Ream, while Gianluca Busio, Yunus Musah, and Aidan Morris are a midfield that should be smooth and composed in their bid to control the game.
Josh Sargent gets the chance to shine up top. Should be a fun one!
USMNT lineup
Turner; A. Robinson, McKenzie, Ream, Scally, Morris, Busio, Musah, Aaronson, Pulisic, Sargent.
Panama lineup
Mosquera, Miller, Farina, Escobar, Murillo, Blackman, Martinez, Carrasquilla, Barcenas, Rodriguez, Guerrero.
USMNT team news, focus
The USMNT are missing many notable players for this camp. Tyler Adams, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Giovanni Reyna, Luca de la Torre, Chris Richards, and Sergino Dest weren’t called up and Timothy Weah, Folarin Balogun, and Johnny Cardoso have been replaced since the initial roster was released to the public.
Panama team news, focus
Los Canaleros have not played since Copa America, when Panama lost to Colombia in the quarterfinal after beating the United States and Bolivia in the group stage. Universidad Catolica forward Jose Fajardo is the side’s active leading scorer and scored in both of the Panama’s Copa America wins. Nashville SC’s Anibal Godoy remains the Panama captain, and the team has plenty of international experience even without 138-times capped Alberto Quintero.
USMNT vs Panama prediction
We know the “fool me twice” maxim has burned prognosticators before, but the USMNT have to look like a hungry, unentitled team this break. Anything less than that would be an indictment on the player pool and the federation. Sure there’s a non-zero chance the team has a heart problem, but we wouldn’t bet on that seeing how strong they’ve looked and their fiery leader Christian Pulisic. It might not be the blowout we might’ve expected with a healthy Adams, Reyna, Richards, and Balogun, but it should be decisive. USMNT 3-1 Panama.
