Surely it will matter little to those privileged fans who this Thursday will be able to get their tickets for the first friendly of Argentina national team as a world champion, but there is an important detail about the appointment on March 23rd: Panama will travel to Buenos Aires without its coach and with a Serie B team full of players from the local league.
This was reported this Wednesday by the Panamanian Football Federation (Fepafut), which revealed the list of 20 players called up for an away match that will certainly be unforgettable, but which will lose its main exponents on the pitch due to calendar problems.
What happened? The Spanish-Danish coach explains it Thomas Christiansen: “For me it would be exciting to go to Argentina to face the world champion, against Messi and company, but that’s not the priority. I will not go to Argentinabecause for me the priority is the Nations League and I don’t want to risk anything.”
The coach then arranged for his starting team to stay in Panama to prepare for the March 28 duel against Costa Rica, for the Concacaf Nations League. The decision was made last week and perhaps caused the AFA to delay the official announcement of ticket sales, as the signing of the contract was also delayed.
Included in the squad roster was six players who are active in foreign clubs plus 14 playing in the Panamanian Soccer League, although the base of the team that competed in the past World Cup qualifiers for Qatar 2022 will not be there.
Among the ‘foreign’ players, martin morano from FK Etar VT from Bulgaria, ivan anderson of the Venezuelan Monagas, Richard Peralta of the Deportivo La Guaira, Cristiano Quintero of the Light of Uruguay, Jovany Ramos of the Deportivo Táchira e Alfred Stephenwho is a member of the Puerto Cabello Academy in Venezuela.
Those chosen for the match against the Argentines will begin training next Sunday, on the pitch of the Los Andes Sports Complex, in the San Miguelito district, in the Panamanian capital. The coach traveling with the team on Tuesday will be an old acquaintance for Argentina: Jorge Dely Valdéswho between 1986 and 1990 played for Central Norte de Salta, Deportivo Paraguayo and El Porvenir, and is now at the helm of his country’s Under 20 team.
Panama’s call
archers: Emerson Dimas (CD Plaza Amador, PAN) and José Guerra (San Francisco FC, PAN).
defenders: Iván Anderson (Monagas, VEN), Michael Casazola (Sporting San Miguelito, PAN), Edgardo Fariña (CD Universitario, PAN), Kevin Galván (Sporting San Miguelito, PAN), Gilberto Hernández (CAI, PAN), Richard Peralta (Deportivo La Guaira, VEN) and Jiovany Ramos (Deportivo Táchira, VEN).
midfielders: Ricardo Ávila (CD Universitario, PAN), Omar Browne (Tauro FC, PAN), Miguel Camargo (Tauro FC, PAN), Irving Gudiño (Tauro FC, PAN), Víctor Medina (Tauro FC, PAN), Martín Morán (FK Etar VT, BUL), José Murillo (CD Plaza Amador, PAN), Cristian Quintero (La Luz, URU) and Jorge Serrano (CAI, PAN).
strikers: Ronaldo Córdoba (Herrera FC, PAN) and Alfredo Stephens (Puerto Cabello Academy, VEN).
Source: Clarin
Jason Root is the go-to source for sports coverage at News Rebeat. With a passion for athletics and an in-depth knowledge of the latest sports trends, Jason provides comprehensive and engaging analysis of the world of sports.