Nicaragua now knows that the pressure is on for the rest of the CONCACAF Gold Cup. The team was shockingly beaten by Martinique in the first match of the group stage, and now, with a match against the United States looming in Cleveland, one figures it must beat Panama on Wednesday night to have a realistic shot of getting into the knockout rounds.
Don't miss the Gold Cup action from Raymond James Stadium at 6:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday, July 12, 2017. Catch every moment of the match live on FOX Sports 1.
Soccer Odds at BookMaker.eu
Panama -330
Nicaragua +850
Draw +425
Over/Under 2.5
Odds Analysis
Nicaragua was a healthy favorite over Martinique in the opening match of Group B, but it was never truly in the fixture. Now, the oddsmakers have to figure out how to line a team that most figured would finish no worse than third in this group and would advance into the quarterfinals with ease.
The end result sees Panama set at -330 on the moneyline and laying a full goal and a half on the Asian Handicap. The Panamanians were very good against the United States and were deserving of their 1-1 draw, a point that should set them up to perhaps win this group with seven points if all goes according to plan from here.
How They Got Here
It's hard to say anything nice about the performance Nicaragua put on in Nashville on Saturday night. Los Pinoleros missed out on a golden opportunity to snare their very first win in the history of the Gold Cup or CONCACAF Championship in their history. For our money, they looked like a complete waste.
A total of 10 players were called up from the Real Esteli FC side that is one of the most dominant in Nicaraguan soccer. Most of the 10 had their say in the match against Martinique, but team legend turned skipper, Henry Duarte couldn't figure out how to push the right buttons to get anything going forward. The 2-0 loss was highlighted by abysmal defending and virtually no threats near the opposing box, the latter of which caused all three changes in the front seven over the course of the match. We have to wonder if Duarte is going to be calling on a bit of a different looking team against Panama, perhaps one that will see a departure from his 4-4-2 formation.
Panama meanwhile, was fantastic against the United States. Sure, the team fell behind on 50 minutes with Dom Dwyer's goal, but 10 minutes later, Miguel Camargo struck back for Panama, giving it the life that it nearly used to go on and win the whole match. Instead, the Panamanians settled for a draw, one that you could argue was more than deserving. Panama could have easily stolen all three points at the end of the match after being firmly on the front foot over the course of the last half hour or so.
Free Soccer Betting Pick
Panama didn't win a single match in the Gold Cup in normal time two years ago and still finished third after beating the United States in the third place game. The team was bright against this Nicaraguan side in January, picking up a 2-1 victory in Copa Centroamericana, and we suspect we're going to see a similarly good performance here. We wouldn't want to be laying more than a goal with Panama, knowing that it is a defense-first team and isn't going to be putting two goals in the back of the net all that often. Yet we suspect this will be a workmanlike effort highlighted by a moment of brilliance from Ismael Diaz or Gabriel Torres.
Gold Cup Odds: Panama 1, Nicaragua 0
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