Panama vs Qatar Predictions, Odds & Sports Betting Tips 07/09/2023

The first Gold Cup quarter final sees unbeaten Panama take on a Qatar side who are somewhat fortunate to have reached this stage. Unsurprisingly, Panama come into the game as favourites, but Qatar will be boosted by their shock 1-0 victory over Mexico last time out.

Two time Gold Cup runners up Panama were in excellent form during the group stages. They opened up with an impressive 2-1 win over Costa Rica, before following it up with victory by the same score against Martinique. An entertaining 2-2 draw with El Salvador rounded off their group campaign.

Prior to the tournament, Panama’s form has been mixed. They were defeated by Canada and Mexico in June, but prior to that, defeated Costa Rica and Nicaragua.

After just one point from their opening two group games, things were looking bleak for Qatar, but a shock 1-0 win over already qualified Mexico saw them progress to the knockout stage. That game saw Qatar score with their only shot on target. In fairness to Qatar, they were slightly unlucky in their opening games. A 97th minute winner saw them defeated by Haiti, whilst a 96th minute equalizer denied them against Honduras.

Anybody who watched Qatar at last year’s World Cup will know that this is a fairly limited squad. Before that Mexico victory, they had won just one of their previous seven games.

This will be just the second time the two sides have met. But if their previous encounter is anything to go by, we could be in for some fireworks this weekend. When the sides faced off in the 2021 Gold Cup, there were six second half goals in a thrilling 3-3 draw. Qatar went on to reach the semi finals of the tournament, before being edged out 1-0 by the United States. Panama failed to make it out of the group stage.

Due to the lack of meetings between the teams, there is not much to be gained from the head to head record between Panama and Qatar. Therefore, our statistical highlights are focused on the recent form of the two teams, particularly in competitive games.

The form book clearly favours Panama, both in terms of their performances in the Gold Cup and those prior to the competition. The fact that Qatar have won just twice in their last eight games is especially telling, and points towards a lack of quality in the Qatari squad.

We don’t think this game will match the excitement of the 2021 encounter. Expect Qatar to sit back and look to pounce on the break. Meanwhile, Panama will be patient with the ball and happy to wait for an opening to emerge. The bookies have Panama as strong favourites, with them as short as 4/7 with some sites. Qatar are best priced at 5/1 with the draw at 5/2.

Our tip is for Panama to win and under 3.5 goals in the game. This is priced at Evens with Betfair, which represents solid value given the way the game is likely to play out.