Costa Rica vs Panama 2017 Gold Cup Free Picks and Game Info

As far as major soccer tournaments go, the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup is one of the more forgiving. After all, only 4 of the 12 starting teams get eliminated in the group stage, and with a couple of punching bag teams in this tournament, the odds of moving on were pretty good for most teams entering this tournament. The group stage is now over, which means it’s on to the quarter-finals, which is where things start to get a little more serious. The benefit of doing well in the group stage was a more manageable draw in the next round, and it’s fair to say that Costa Rica have a tough match-up ahead of them despite winning their group, as they will have to face a very talented young Panama side on Wednesday night in Philadelphia. While some nations used this tournament as a way to try out some fringe players, Costa Rica came to the US with a full squad and a real willingness to win it all. They have not been at their best in this tournament, but did enough to top Group A, although they were pushed to the limit by a surprisingly good Canada squad. Panama breezed through the group stage, and were perhaps a little unfortunate not to win their group, which went to the US on goal difference. This game looks as though it may well be the best game of the quarter-finals, and while Costa Rica are the soccer betting favorites, you can bet that Panama are not going to go down without a fight.

Costa Rica vs Panama 2017 Gold Cup Free Picks and Game Info

“Today we won decisively.”#CRC regains confidence after securing a spot in the #GoldCup2017 quarterfinals: https://t.co/6ESSq3q0O1 pic.twitter.com/g5bDH0MyC4

— Major League Soccer (@MLS) July 15, 2017

When: Wednesday, July 19 at 6 PM EST Where: Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia TV: FS1 Live Stream: FOX Sports GO FIFA Odds: Costa Rica -½ (+122)

Why Bet on Costa Rica?

Despite bringing a very strong squad to the 2017 Gold Cup, Los Ticos have tried to play some of their younger players as well. They got things rolling with a 1-0 win over Honduras, although they were a little lucky to come away with the win in that one. They followed that game up with a 1-1 tie against Canada, which was a result that suited both teams, before closing out the group stage with a comfortable 3-0 win over French Guinea. One thing that Costa Rica have in their favor heading into this game is that they have a lot of players who can stick the ball in the back of the net. The 5 goals that they managed during the group stage were scored by 5 different players, and the addition of Rodney Wallace to the squad has proven to be a real stroke of genius. On the downside, Los Ticos have lost 4 very good players to injury, and while they have all been replaced, their squad has been considerably weakened.

Costa Rica CONCACAF Gold Cup Record

Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
El Salvador 1963	Champions	1st	6	5	1	0	14	2
Guatemala 1965	Third Place	3rd	5	2	2	1	11	4
Honduras 1967	–
Costa Rica 1969	Champions	1st	5	4	1	0	13	2
Trinidad and Tobago 1971	Third Place	3rd	5	2	1	2	6	5
Haiti 1973	–
Mexico 1977	–
Honduras 1981	–
1985	Third Place	3rd	8	2	5	1	10	8
1989	Champions	1st	8	5	1	2	10	6
United States 1991	Fourth Place	4th	5	1	0	4	5	9
United States Mexico 1993	Third Place	3rd	5	1	3	1	6	5
United States 1996	–
United States 1998	Group Stage	5th	2	1	0	1	8	4
United States 2000	Quarter-Finals	6th	3	0	2	1	5	6
United States 2002	Runners-up	2nd	5	3	1	1	8	5
United States Mexico 2003	Fourth Place	4th	5	2	0	3	9	7
United States 2005	Quarter-Finals	6th	4	2	1	1	6	4
United States 2007		7th	4	1	1	2	3	4
United States 2009	Semi Final	3rd	5	2	2	1	10	6
United States 2011	Quarter-Finals	5th	4	1	2	1	8	6
United States 2013		5th	4	2	0	2	4	2
United States Canada 2015		7th	4	0	3	1	3	4
United States 2017	–
Total	3 Titles	18/23	87	36	26	25	139	91

Why bet on Panama?

Panama got their 2017 Gold Cup off to an excellent start with a 1-1 tie against a makeshift USA team, and were probably a little unlucky not to get the win. Next up was a gritty 2-1 win over Nicaragua, which Panama followed up with a 3-0 win over Martinique. The Panamanians have done a nice job of spreading out the scoring, but it has been midfielder Miguel Camargo who has been pulling all the strings, scoring once and adding a pair of assists through the 3 games in the group stages. It has been the MLS players on this squad who have done the majority of the damage in attack, and Panama will be looking to those guys to deliver more of the same as an underdog in the quarter-finals.

Panama CONCACAF Gold Cup Record

Year	Round	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA
United States Mexico 1993	Group Stage	3	0	1	2	3	8
United States 2005	Runners-up	6	3	1	2	7	6
United States 2007	Quarter-Finals	4	1	1	2	6	7
United States 2009	Quarter-Finals	4	1	1	2	7	5
United States 2011	Semi-Finals	5	3	1	1	7	6
United States 2013	Runners-up	6	4	1	1	11	4
United StatesCanada 2015	Third Place	6	0	5	1	6	7
United States 2017
Total	3 Titles	28	12	11	11	47	43

Expert Pick and 2017 Gold Cup Final Score Prediction

While these two teams appear to be evenly matched, it is Costa Rica who have the slight edge in talent, even though they have lost some of their better players to injury. I expect this to be a close one, but I think it will be Costa Rica who will eventually find a way to win.

Costa Rica 2 Panama 1