Following the result, Panama’s head coach pointed to severe traffic delays and exhausting travel logistics in Bengaluru as major factors behind his team’s sluggish performance, whilst also acknowledging the scale of a squad transition. The Central American side, expected to handle the fixture with much greater control, struggled to settle into the match. As FIFA World Cup 2026 participants Panama arrived in India for a friendly match against the hosts, a goal-fest was expected, overshwhelmingly in favour of the touring side but it ended up being a 1-1 stalemate.
Five players got their first start today,” the coach noted. As per the coach Thomas Christiansen, the grueling two-hour bus ride through Bengaluru’s notorious traffic just to reach the stadium played a big role. Reflecting on the pre-match ordeal, he expressed frustration over the off-field arrangements that hampered their preparations. “The logistics and the travel here were also complicated. We have to be smarter when we sign these agreements again. “A generational change is not easy. “The result is my fault. But I’m happy to see them start with five debutants. We have to learn from this experience. The coach was also quick to credit India’s tactical execution, particularly praising the threat posed by their forward line.
Because our players deserve better, i don’t want this to sound like an excuse, but we have to be careful with how we handle things inside and outside the pitch. Because of the travel and logistics, we didn’t have time to work, to train,.
“I don’t want this to sound like an excuse, but it is not easy to be in a bus for two hours in traffic to get to the stadium,” the Panama coach Christiansen said in the post-match press conference.
