A grand total of two shots on goal. That includes both American and Panamanian shots - although it should be mentioned that the two mentioned above were both American - and thus it becomes clear that the Gold Cup final this year was a most cagey affair.
The hosts kept pressing for the win, and Panama kept defending, for most of the match.
United States had by far the most possession of the ball, and both Landon Donovan (at 0-0) and Eddie Johnson (at 1-0) missed huge opportunities to score. Both forwards placed the ball wide of goal, so they're not included in the two on-goal chances.
To their credit, Panama players did a great job of blocking persistent American attacks, but were never a dangerous attacking force, not even at 0-1.
And they had no clear chances of scoring.
Klinsmann (who was banned from sitting on the bench, due to the incident during the Honduras semifinal) and his coaching staff performed an excellent switch when they introduced Brek Shea, in the 68th minute.
42 seconds later, a weak diagonal cross was missed by every Panamanian defender, as well as by Landon Donovan, who was inches (or cm, if you will,) away from touching it, and the substitute was there to push it in cleanly, one meter away from Panama's goal line.
How the Panamanians, who had defended almost flawlessly prior to that, failed so abjectly in blocking a seemingly inoffensive ball is to be analyzed on many sports shows, for sure.
But, as unexpected and auspicious as the goal was, the fact remains that that was the only well-taken chance of a long tactical battle between the two squads, and it will remain in history as the winner of the 2013 Gold Cup.
Brek Shea had also scored the only goal in the United States - Costa Rica match, on July 16. And he was a substitute in that match, as well.
So, The United States wins their 5th Gold Cup. First since 2007.
Mexico still leads, with 6.
Next Gold Cup is to take place in 2015.
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