2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup Tactical Preview – Panama

Five years on from the Panama Men’s team’s inaugural FIFA World Cup campaign, Panama’s women’s team have also made history by qualifying for the FIFA Women’s World Cup for the first time. This comes off of the back of the side narrowly missing out on qualification in 2019. However, under the guidance of Mexican coach Ignacio Quintana, the side managed to qualify through the inter-confederation play-offs, after finishing third in the CONCACAF women’s championship. 

Quintana, before the last game against Paraguay, stated that qualification would be a watershed moment for the team as well as the country, rewarding the players for their efforts over the last 2 years. With the side led by fantastic players such as Marta Cox as well as Cedeno-Coba, Quinteiro has helped instil confidence in an already talented side.

Nevertheless, the side faces a tough task in Group F against the likes of Brazil, Jamaica, as well as France. This scout report analysis will look to provide a tactical analysis highlighting the tactics of the side as well as their strengths and weaknesses. 

Predicted Starting XI 

Panama, through the qualification stages as well as recent international friendlies, have fielded a 5-4-1 — at least on paper. In possession, this has often changed to a double-pivot, with Schiandra González and Aldrith Quintero forming a double-pivot. Marta Cox advances further forward alongside Erika Hernández to form a front three. 

The most exciting aspect of this Panama side is young wing-back Hilary Jaén and young centre-back Carina Baltrip-Reyes. The inclusion of these young players is balanced with the experience provided by the rest of the back line, with Yomira Pinzón, Rebeca Espinosa and Katherine Castillo all likely to feature as well. 

By and large, the Panama squad is very young, with the oldest player on the side Nadia Ducreux at 31. Although this can first seem concerning due to the momentous occasion, this tournament provides an opportunity for players on the side to gain notable experience on the world stage. This tournament can be seen as a platform to provide exposure to the highest level of women’s football and gives many players in the side a chance to show their talents against high-quality opposition. 

Attacking Phase 

 From a possession standpoint, Panama have dominated the ball to a large extent over the period of their qualifiers as well as international friendlies, with the side nearly in the 84th percentile in this metric. This side, in turn, have managed to turn possession into goals, which can be seen through the fact that the side is in the 82nd percentile in relation to goals per match and also ranking relatively high in the metric of xG per match and shots per match. 

However, although the side manages to utilise possession in a manner that allows them to generate a high volume of shots, as can be seen by the metric of xG generated per shot, the shots that they take are not high-quality ones. In addition to this, the side are only in the 23rd percentile for shots on target. Within this, however, there are still positive signs, as they are in the 71st percentile for touches in the opposition box and are in the 60th percentile for entries into the final third. This, ultimately, suggests that the team through their qualifiers have managed to break down the opposition but may lack the patience in selecting optimal opportunities to take shots.     

From a tactical perspective, in their games against the top CONCACAF teams such as Canada, Panama have looked to play more direct football. However, they have demonstrated that they do have the ability to build up and play out from the back. 

As stated earlier, in possession, Panama look to form a 5-2-3. Within this structure, Panama look to circulate the ball between the players in the back three before looking to play vertical passes to wither to the players in the double-pivot or to players in the front three dropping deeper to receive the ball. An example of this can be seen below, with Pinzón receiving the ball from the goalkeeper before playing a pass to Quintero in the midfield. 

The Panama team alternate between playing vertical passes to the midfielders or attacking three or aerial balls into the front three as well. In regards to the latter, Panama are able to create effective combinations where they can play a pass to a dropping forward, while the other two players in the front two look to make runs in behind the opposition. This can be seen in the example below, with Tanner receiving the ball from Quintero. Tanner would then play a pass to the advancing Cedeno-Coba, who would utilise her speed to reach the pass before playing a cross into the box  

Panama’s midfielders and defenders also execute these actions in the opposition’s half, which can be seen below. However, this time, instead of dropping deep Marta Cox would look to make a run attacking the last line. From these positions, Panama’s midfielders as well as attackers look to make runs into the box. 

Although Panama are able to combine well in these situations, they are not able to consistently win offensive duels, which results in the side giving away possession relatively often. An additional weakness can also be seen when vertical passes are played to midfielders, who when these passes are played, have no supporting teammates to be able to play the ball off to. As a result, their use of vertical passes is not fully maximised, this can be seen in the example below. 

Defensive phase 

Defensively Panama have significant concerns. Although having a high pressing efficiency percentage in the 98th percentile. The side are only in the 32nd percentile for xG against per match as well as the 28th percentile for xG per shot against. In addition to this compared to their counterparts, they complete a few amount of interceptions per game as well as the percentage of aerial duels won. 

Panama have utilised a 5-4-1 defensively which can be seen in the image below. Collectively, the side tends to protect the centre well, which can be seen in the example below In their game against Canada. 

Players in the second line of the side’s defence are able to keep close proximity to one another in order to adequately provide support to teammates and prevent passes directly through the centre. This can be seen in the distance between Laurie Batista as well as Deysiré Bisciano. After the pass is played to the opposition player in the midfield, Batista is able to quickly press the player forcing them backwards. It is also important to note the position of their wingers, especially González on the right, who tucks in in order to keep the centre compact. 

However, this central compactness comes at a cost, with Panama having issues defending wide areas when the ball is played to the flanks quickly. This can be seen in the image below, with Quintero heavily orienting her position to prevent a pass behind the second line of defence. As a result of this, there is ample space for the opposition right-back to receive the ball and attack the space between the second and third line. A possible solution for this could be to have a player in the back five step out and aid the second line in covering opposition players between the lines which helps spread defensive responsibility and reduce the workload of the second line. 

It’s not totally uncommon to see Panama apply more aggressive press, such as in their friendly game against the Dominican Republic. In this scenario, Panam chose to press in a 5-3-2/ 5-4-1, with Tanner the striker, as well as the ball near winger pressing the opposition centre-backs which can be seen in the image below. 

However, Panama faced problems within this structure particularly in regards to the coordination of their pressing actions.  As can be seen below, as Cedeno-Coba presses the ball carrier, Neither Tanner nor Quinteiro engage in the press as fast as Cedeno-Coba. Tanner in the frontline partially drops deeper to cover the opposition defensive midfielder and Quinteiro also advances slightly in order to cover the same player. As a result, two players cover the same player and both players do not look to support Cedeno-Coba’s initial pressing action quickly enough in order to stifle the opposition’s build-up.

In addition to the issues around coordination, there are also issues that centre around the compactness of the second line. This can be seen in the example below, with Tanner pressing the opposition centre-back and Marta Cox advancing slightly but also orienting her position to the opposition left-full-back in order to have quick access to the player if a pass is made. Due to this, as well as González orienting her position to the opposition midfielder, space is created between Cox and González, which creates a passing lane for the opposition to exploit.      

 Transitions

In regards to the defensive transition, Panama are not aggressive in trying to regain possession after losing it. In higher areas of the pitch, rather than looking to put pressure on the opposition immediately, Panama often look to fall back into their defensive shape. This can be seen in the example below, after González losses possession on the right-hand side, with the players around her looking to protect the space around them or retreat back into their positions.  

From an attacking transition perspective, the side generally react well when trying to regain possession, with the wing-backs as well as players in the forward line reacting quickly and pushing further up the pitch into free spaces. Nevertheless, at times, the side drop so deep defensively that it is difficult for them to be able to advance further up the pitch quickly enough before facing the opposition’s counter-press. 

Defenders 

As stated previously, Panama have a good balance of youth and experience in their back line. The same can be said in regards to their goalkeeping options, with the 31-year-old Ducreux deputising the 22-year-old Yenith Bailey. 

In addition to this, their options, such as Espinosa, are very athletic as well as secure on the ball. This is an asset in the build-up phase, as they can find players ahead of them and burst into space when the opportunity arises. 

Midfielders

Panama have a vast array of midfielders to choose from, with there once again a balance of youth and experience. Panama’s midfielders will have a pivotal role to play especially defensively and will need to ensure that they stay calm when in possession. In addition to this, Panama will look to take advantage of the dynamism of their double-pivot in the final third, with at least one of the players in the pivot looking to make bursting runs into the box.

Attackers

The attackers in the side have an extremely important role to play the side and will have to finish their chances if Panama are to progress into the knockout stages. Cedeno-Coba and Riley Tanner will be ones to watch, with Cedeno-Coba’s pace, in particular, likely to cause the opposition problems.  

Key player 

Marta Cox, the captain is an extremely important player for this Panama team, with the 25-year-old especially important in the build-up as well as the final third. Cox is able to drop deeper and aid in progressing the ball forward, possessing a good first touch and an incredible ability to retain the ball. Cox is also capable of making bursting runs in order to attack the back line and is a threat from set-piece opportunities. It is likely that the team will look to find her often in possession and give her opportunities to maximise her abilities.

Tournament Prediction

Panama will look to make their mark in this year’s tournament, however, this will be a challenging task to achieve with the side in Group F alongside Brazil, Jamaica and France. It will be extremely difficult for Panama to advance to the last 16, as it will be for the rest of the teams in the group. 

Nevertheless, Qualifying and competing in the tournament is in itself an incredible achievement. In a group with 3 very competitive teams, Panama will be able to gain notable experience that will undoubtedly benefit the side in the future.