Here's everything you need to know ahead of the World Cup Group L opener between Ghana and Panama, including probable lineups, key statistics, and broadcast details.
Ghana has become a familiar face at recent World Cups. This tournament marks their fifth appearance, having only missed the 2018 event in Russia out of the last five editions. Their best performance came in South Africa, where they reached the quarter-finals.
The Black Stars enjoyed a smooth qualification campaign for the tournament in Canada, the USA, and Mexico, topping their African qualifying group with just one loss and one draw in ten matches.
For Panama, this will be their second appearance at the finals, returning after their debut in Russia in 2018. They arrive as a more cohesive unit under the guidance of former Barcelona player Thomas Christiansen, who has been at the helm for over five years. Panama also secured their World Cup spot directly, finishing first in the final round of Concacaf qualifying.
With England and Croatia also in Group L, Ghana and Panama are widely considered the underdogs. However, given the upsets seen so far in the tournament, further surprises cannot be ruled out.
During their respective qualifying campaigns, Ghana averaged 2.3 goals scored and 0.6 goals conceded per game. In contrast, Panama posted an average of 1.9 goals for and 0.5 against.
Both nations played a total of 10 qualifying matches. The Black Stars kept six clean sheets, the exact same number as Los Canaleros (The Canal Men).
In terms of discipline, the African side averaged 1.2 yellow cards per game and received no red cards. The Central American team was shown an average of 1.4 yellow cards and also avoided any dismissals.
Ghana: Ati-Zigi; Adjetey, Mensah, Opoku, Senaya; Partey, Owusu; Fatawu, Ayew, Sulemana; Adu.
Manager: Carlos Queiroz.
Panama: Mosquera; Blackman, Fariña, Ramos, Andrade; Murillo, Martínez, Rodríguez, Bárcenas; Harvey, Waterman.
Manager: Thomas Christiansen.
Neither team has reported any injuries or suspensions ahead of the match.
Ghana and Panama have never faced each other in a senior international match.
This World Cup Group L fixture will be played on Wednesday, June 17, with kick-off at 7:00 PM (EST) from the Toronto Stadium in Toronto, CA. The match will be available to watch live on FS1, available via cable and live streaming services such as YouTube TV.
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