"A penalty kick goal by Freddy Adu earned the United States a 1-0 victory over Panama in an Olympic qualifying game in Tampa, Fla., Thursday night, eliminating the Panamanians from contention while enhancing American prospects of reaching Beijing.

Adu's goal, his second of the eight-nation tournament, came in the 42nd minute after teammate Jozy Altidore had been tripped in the penalty area by Panama goalkeeper Jose Calderon while running onto a through pass.

Adu, who has elevated his game considerably since moving to Benfica in Portugal, struck his shot well, easily beating Calderon from the penalty spot.

It was a solid, if unspectacular performance by the U.S., one in which two players stood out. Maurice Edu, a midfielder for Toronto FC, was moved into a central defensive role and played well. Stuart Holden, a Scottish-born midfielder from the defending Major League Soccer champion Houston Dynamo, was tireless in his efforts on offense and defense and certainly would have caught the eye of U.S. national team Coach Bob Bradley, watching from one of the Raymond James Stadium suites.

The victory gave the U.S. a 1-0-1 record and four points after its 1-1 tie with Cuba on Tuesday. Honduras, the Americans' opponent in Saturday's first-round finale, is 2-0 and has six points.

A tie or a loss Saturday would leave the U.S. in second place, at best, which could mean a semifinal game against Mexico, the same team that knocked the Americans out in 2004 and foiled their hopes of going to the Athens Olympics."

Fonte: Los Angeles Times.
Imagem: Doug Benc/Getty Images.