MIAMI, Florida – The 2023 FIFA Under-17 Men’s World Cup in Indonesia continued on Monday with Panama earning their first point of the tournament in Group A in a 1-1 draw with host nation Indonesia at the Gelora Bung Tomo Stadium in Surabaya.
Panama came out the stronger of the two sides and had a bevy of chances to break the deadlock in the first half.
They were finally able to do so right before halftime thanks to some fantastic work from Oldemar Castillo, who muscled his way past two defenders while keeping his balance and then firing into net for a 1-0 Panama lead.
However, Indonesia managed to pull level 1-1 in the 54’ with Arkhan Kaka steering home a header.
Panama nearly snagged a late winner in the 86’ via a Hector Rios header off a corner kick, only to see the ball strike the crossbar and bounce away, leaving Panama with just a point.
In the other match of the day for a Concacaf side, Canada fell 3-0 to Uzbekistan in Group B at the Manahan Stadium in Surakarta.
Two goals in three minutes midway through the first half made for tough sledding for the Canadians, who then conceded late in the 80’ for the final scoreline.
