Thomas Christiansen, technical director of the Panama national football team, stated that while the squad for the World Cup is almost finalized, there are still some spots that are not yet concrete. Christiansen made these remarks during a press conference after the list of players for the friendly matches was revealed. Panama will travel to South Africa for friendlies on Friday, March 27, and Tuesday, March 31. “The squad is almost defined,” said Christiansen, but he added, “There are still some groups to finalize, some spots are still open, nothing is closed, but what is certain is that the possibilities are more difficult because we already have a fairly solid group.” Regarding the matches against South Africa, Christiansen emphasized the importance of facing an African team, considering Panama's first opponent in the upcoming World Cup. On June 17, they will debut against Ghana at Toronto Stadium in the first match of Group L, which they also share with England and Croatia. “The objective is to play against an African team. There are constant similarities with Ghana of what we will find with South Africa, and that was the objective,” explained the Spanish-Danish strategist at the press conference. The first friendly match against Bafana Bafana will be played at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, while the second will be held at DHL Stadium in Cape Town, both venues from the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.
