MIAMI, Florida – For the first time ever two teams from Panama will square off in the Scotiabank Concacaf League, as Tauro take on Sporting San Miguelito in the 2022 SCL Round of 16, beginning with Tuesday’s first leg at the Estadio Universitario in Penonome, Panama.
While this is the first ever SCL meeting between the two teams, they have met plenty of times on the domestic front, with Tauro holding an 18W-16D-7L advantage, however in their last four meetings, each side has one win and there have been two draws.
Sporting San Miguelito reached this stage of the tournament by eliminating Guatemalan side Malacateco 4-1 on aggregate in the Preliminary Round. Meanwhile, Tauro will be making their 2022 SCL debut in what is their fourth SCL appearance.
The Sporting San Miguelito attack is likely to be led by Dwann Oliveira, who had both a goal and an assist in the Malacateco series. The Brazilian was also active on the defensive end, making seven steals in the 3-0 second leg win.
Stats, Game Notes Sporting San Miguelito vs Tauro FC
Speaking of defense, Sporting San Miguelito can also look to veteran Adolfo Machado for help. The 2018 FIFA World Cup player also scored against Malacateco and has been his usual solid self on the back line.
2021 Panamanian Clausura champions Tauro will counter with proven SCL goal scorer Edwin Aguilar. The 37-year-old striker is the club’s all-time top scorer in the tournament with six goals and finished as the joint-top scorer in the 2018 edition when he scored five goals in helping Tauro to a semifinal finish.
The familiarity between these two sides should make for an entertaining first leg.
Referee: David Gomez (CRC)