LEÓN, Mexico (Aug. 2, 2024) – With just four minutes left in regular time at Estadio León, midfielder Brooklyn Raines struck a rocket from 30 yards off an attempted clearance to push the U.S. Under-20 Men’s Youth National Team past Panama 2-1 and into its fourth-consecutive Concacaf U-20 Championship Final.
With the game level 1-1 in the dying moments, the USA was on the attack and forced the Panama defense on its heals in the box. That’s when a final clearance attempt fell to Raines, who wasted no time firing his long-range shot into the top right corner for the game-winning goal.
The U.S. initially took the lead on its second shot of the match. Forward David Vazquez poked a Niko Tsakiris cross past Panama goalkeeper Cecilio Burgess in the 40th minute to give Michael Nsien’s side a 1-0 halftime lead. Panama equalized in the 72nd minute thanks to a Rafael Mosquera penalty kick.
The U.S. now awaits the winner of Friday’s other semifinal between Mexico and Cuba as it looks to claim its fourth-straight Concacaf U-20 Championship title on Sunday, August 4. Kickoff from Estadio León is set for 5:06 p.m. ET and the match can be seen live on FS1 and VIX.
USA – David Vazquez (Niko Tsakiris), 40th minute: Midfielder Taha Habroune one-touched the ball to Tsakiris who was running down the right sideline. With just one defender on him, Tsakiris went toward the endline, juked his defender, and gave himself enough space to fire a cross into the box. Vazquez beat his mark to the middle of the six-yard box and poked the cross with his left foot past the goalkeeper. USA 1, PAN 0
PAN – Rafael Mosquera, 72nd minute: The USA conceded a penalty when Pedro Soma was called for a handball in the box. Panama forward Rafael Mosquera stepped to the spot and hammered his shot into the upper right corner of the net for the equalizer. USA 1, PAN 1 [WATCH]
USA – Brooklyn Raines, 86th minute: Midfielder Cruz Medina sent a ball into the box that was initially headed into the air before a Panama defender cleared it with a bicycle kick. The ball came out of the box toward Raines, where the midfielder settled off the bounce, squared up and fired a rocket from 30 yards away, smacking the underside of the crossbar before dropping down over the goal line. USA 2, PAN 1. FINAL
Match: U.S. Under-20 Men’s Youth National Team vs. Panama
Date: August 2, 2024
Competition: 2024Concacaf U-20 Championship – Semifinals
Venue: Estadio León; León, Mexico
Kickoff: 3:06 p.m. local (5:06 p.m. ET)
Weather: 81 and cloudy
| Scoring Summary | 1 | 2 | F |
| USA | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| PAN | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| USA – David Vazquez (Niko Tsakiris) | 40th minute |
| PAN – Rafael Mosquera (Penalty) | 72 |
| USA – Brooklyn Raines | 86 |
Lineups:
USA: 12-Adam Beaudry; 16-Ethan Kohler (2-Aiden Harangi, 70), 4-Noah Cobb, 3-Nolan Norris (Capt.), 15-Luca Bambino; 6-Pedro Soma, 19-Sergio Oregel (8-Brooklyn Raines, 55), 14-Taha Habroune (7-Nimfasha Berchimas, 55); 11-David Vazquez (5-Stuart Hawkins, 90+4), 10-Niko Tsakiris (13-Cruz Medina, 70), 20-Ruben Ramos, Jr.
Substitutes not used: 1-Julian Eyestone, 21-Duran Ferree, 9-Marcos Zambrano, 17-Keyrol Figueroa, 18-Zavier Gozo
Head coach: Michael Nsien
CRC: 12-Cecilio Burgess; 3-Julio Rodriguez, 4-Erick Diaz, 5-Ariel Arroyo, 13-Martin Krug, 16-Aimar Modelo (10-Giovany Herbert, 90+1); 6-Blas Perez, 7-Kairo Walters (14-Juan Hall, 77), 8-Anel Ryce (17-Carlos Hernandez, 62); 9-Gustavo Herrera, 19-Rafael Mosquera (Capt.)
Substitutes not used: 1-Ian Flores, 21-Sean Deane, 2-Jhoamir Hill, 11-Virgilio Escala, 15-Joseph Jones, 20-Antony Herbert
Head coach: Jorge Dely Valdes
Stats Summary: USA / PAN
Shots: 9 / 9
Shots on Goal: 8 / 3
Saves: 2 / 1
Corner Kicks: 5 / 2
Fouls: 14 / 10
Offside: 1 / 1
Misconduct Summary:
PAN – Ariel Arroyo (caution) 65th minute
Officials:
Referee: David Gomez (CRC)
Assistant Referee 1: Carlos Fernandez (CRC)
Assistant Referee 2: Wasnah Barnarde (ATG)
Fourth Official: Filiberto Martinez (SLV)
VAR: Oscar Macias (MEX)
AVAR1: Diego Ojer (GUA)