Román Torres strutted down the walkway at Starfire Sports Complex on Thursday with the smile and swagger of a man who had just led his country to its first World Cup appearance.
Voice hoarse and clad in sweats, Torres had spent the last 48 hours celebrating with his teammates after his 87th-minute goal against Costa Rica in the final round of the CONCACAF Hexagonal gave Los Canaleros a 2-1 win and sent them to an automatic World Cup berth. The Panamanian government declared Wednesday a national holiday as the Central American country of four million people reveled in an ecstasy they had for too long waited to taste.
“Panama was crazy on Tuesday night, it was crazy yesterday and it’s still crazy right now,” Torres said through a translator on Thursday. “My time in the airport was just as mad as what you guys have seen. Panama is experiencing a pure joy that we’ve never had before.”
Had Panama’s match remained tied, Honduras would have earned CONCACAF’s final automatic berth, the United States would have gone to an intercontinental playoff and the Panamanians would have, yet again, agonizingly and disappointedly, watched the World Cup from afar. There would have been four more years of questions, of lamenting, of San Zusireruns.
Torres was not going to let that happen.
Two minutes before his goal, he looked at his bench, waiting for the go-ahead from the technical staff to push forward and search for a game-winner. The instruction never came, so Torres, the affable and beloved 31-year-old captain, took matters into his own hands and went up on his accord.
“I wasn’t aware of what was going on in those other games,” Torres said. “That moment will never fade from any Panamanians’ memories. What happened on Tuesday is historic for the country. Román Torres scoring the goal that sent Panama to the World Cup, it’s something that will never be erased from anyone’s memories.”
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Torres’ momentous goal, his second for club and country in less than a year, was understandably met with some mixed emotions from his American international teammates, who are part of the first U.S. team to miss the World Cup since 1986. Torres spoke to Sounders and U.S. forward Jordan Morris and midfielder Cristian Roldan on Wednesday, and while they were happy and proud of their friend and teammate, they were saddened by the opportunity Torres’ heroics snatched.
Sounders General Manager & President of Soccer Garth Lagerwey, while also disappointed in the United States’ failure to qualify, was unabashedly excited for Torres and Uruguayan Nicolás Lodeiro, who also booked their ticket to Russia next summer.
“He’s not picking who’s scoring on at what time,” Lagerwey said of Torres. “He’s trying to elevate his country to something they’ve never been to before.
“I’m really excited about the World Cup because for our club, it’s a really good thing,” he continued. “What Román accomplished, his nation has never qualified before in the history of their country. He did it, and he scored the goal. He’s their captain. That’s amazing. I could not be happier for him.”
Added Torres: “The Panamanians are so blessed with what happened. It’s something we’ve been working toward for a very long time. I can’t say it enough.”
