Chile 4, Panama 2 | Copa America Centenario Match Recap

Franco Panizo

Panama provided a scare, but Chile overpowered them to keep their title defense alive.

Chile beat out Panama for the final quarterfinals berth at the Copa America Centenario on Tuesday night by picking up a 4-2 victory at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Eduardo Vargas and Alexis Sanchez each had a brace in the two teams' win-or-go-home Group D finale to help the reigning tournament champions overcome a poor start and move one step closer to the final.

Panama jumped out in front after just five minutes through Miguel Camargo, but the lead was short-lived. Vargas netted the first of his two goals on the night 10 minutes later on a rebound, and put Chile ahead just before halftime with a nice header. Sanchez then scored via an impressive volley in the 50th minute to push the lead to 3-1, and a nodded effort in the waning moments iced the game for good.

With the win, Chile finished in second place in Group D with six points while Panama finished in third with three. Chile could win the group if Argentina suffers a lopsided loss to Bolivia later on Tuesday.

Box Score

5’ – PAN – Miguel Camargo (Gabriel Gomez)
15’ – CHI – Eduardo Vargas
43’ – CHI – Eduardo Vargas (Jean Beausejour)
50’ – CHI – Alexis Sanchez (Eduardo Vargas)
75’ – PAN – Abdiel Arroyo
89’ – CHI – Alexis Sanchez (Jose Fuenzalida)
Full box score
Stats

Three Things

PRODUCTIVE POSSESSION: Despite going down early, Chile were the better side for much of the match. The reigning South American champions held onto the ball for most of the 90 minutes, finishing with 76.3 percent possession, and took nine shots on goal.
OH, BRAVO: Panama may have put up a good fight, but both of their goals came, at least in part, because of errors by Chile goalkeeper Claudio Bravo. The Barcelona netminder first did not read the bounce on Miguel Camargo's shot from distance, and then failed to deal with Abdiel Arroyo's header at the near post in the second half. Chile will likely need Bravo to sharpen up if they are to make another run at the tournament final.
MISSING PEREZ: Two goals might not be a bad haul, but Panama's attack missed the suspended Blas Perez. The Panamanians managed to only put three shots on frame, and could have certainly used a crafty and aggressive forward like the Vancouver Whitecaps veteran to help make the front line more dangerous.