JD Gunn Makes Panama Debut
The Panama City native put up a good effort in his first appearance for Los Canaleros.
Friday night was a monumental one for Revolution II goalkeeper JD Gunn as the 25-year-old made his Panama National Team debut when the nation squared off against Peruvian side Universitario.
After receiving his first call-up in October, Gunn told The Blazing Musket he was “super excited for the opportunity” and emphasized the hard work he put in over the years to turn a dream into a reality.
It only took Universitario seven minutes to find the back of the net thanks to a well-placed free kick. After the free kick was drilled into the box, Paolo Reyna headed the ball to the left side of the net yards out from the goal. Gunn attempted to get a hand to it, but with the ball's pace plus Jiovany Ramos falling in his direction following Reyna’s header, Gunn couldn’t deflect it as Univeristario took an early 1-0 lead.
But Gunn came up big in the 15th minute. After a poor touch from a Panama defender in their defensive half, Edison Flores got on top of the ball and drilled it to the upper half of the goal. Gunn got a hand to it and tipped it over the bar to keep the deficit at one.
The goalkeeper was tested in the opening minute of the second half when a long ball sent forward led Universitario to slot the ball to the right side of the net. Gunn was alert as he stretched wide to make the save as the Panama defense cleared the ball away.
Things finally went Panama’s way in the 49th minute when a series of passes led the ball to the feet of Gustavo Herrera, who pushed his way into the box and slotted the ball past Sebastián Britos to make it 1-1.
Miscommunication nearly led to Universitario finding the go-ahead goal in the 51st minute. Panama passed the ball back into their own box but nobody went for it as Universitario got on top of it. Gunn launched off his line and thankfully deflected the shot and covered the ball to keep the game tied at one apiece.
Gunn’s night ended in the 80th minute when backup keeper Eddie Roberts relieved him. Soon after, disaster struck for Panama in the closing seconds as the referee awarded Universitario a penalty and the chance to secure victory. José Rivera stepped to the spot, looking to put the Peruvian side up in the closing seconds and slotted a ball right down the middle as Roberts laid out, attempting to make the save. Unfortunately for Panama, the ball snuck under him and rolled into the net as Universitario secured a 2-1 victory at home.
During that October interview, Gunn emphasized how he wanted to make his nation proud. While the result didn’t go their way, Gunn’s performance was something Panama fans should be happy with.
Gunn and Panama will now turn their attention to Concacaf Nations League action as they face the United States in the competition’s semifinal on March 20th.