ATLANTA, Georgia – A sigh of relief could be heard all the way in Panama City with the news that Panama duo Gabriel Torres and Erick Davis avoided any major injuries following their accidental collision during a training session here over the weekend.
“We will be ready for Saturday,” Torres told reporters on Tuesday in regard to the duo’s availability for the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup opener against the United States. “I was worried a lot for [Davis] since I saw that he was bleeding a lot and later I thought that I was going to miss the Gold Cup, but the doctors were calming us down and later confirmed to us that playing in the tournament ran no risk.”
The news of Torres’ health will surely be welcomed by head coach Hernan Dario Gomez.
Torres was the joint-top scorer in the 2013 Gold Cup. With the veteran strike force of Blas Perez and Luis Tejada omitted from the 2017 roster, the 28-year-old’s presence could be crucial. His experience and leadership will be used to help young forwards Abdiel Arroyo (22) and Ismael Diaz (20) get accustomed to football on the continental level.
“I have had the chance to play with experienced players, so now I try to transmit the experience I have gotten during these years to those who are here,” Torres finished. “I hope that things go in the best way for us and I hope that we can all score goals and that we can all contribute to be able to take away big things.”
