When the United States take on Panama on Tuesday in a CONCACAF 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualifying match (7 p.m. PT; beIN Sports), Seattle Sounders forward Clint Dempsey will have a chance to break Landon Donovan’s all-time U.S. men’s national team goalscoring record.
With 52 career international goals, Dempsey entered last Friday’s qualifier against Honduras five shy of Donovan’s 57. But after a vintage Dempsey performance, in which he recorded a hat trick in his first U.S. match in nine months, Dempsey now sits just two back.
“At this rate, he might break my record tonight,” now-Fox analyst Donovan said of Dempsey on Friday after his second goal.
Dempsey has three goals in nine career matches against Panama and is currently in on an incredible goalscoring streak. Dating back to his last three games last year before he was sidelined for six months with an irregular heartbeat, Dempsey has 10 goals in his previous seven appearances in all competitions.
If Dempsey does not tie or break the record on Tuesday, his next opportunity will come on June 9 in a home match against Trinidad and Tobago in the fifth round of the Hexagonal. A road match against Mexico comes just two days later.
MLSSoccer.com’s Charles Boehm compared Dempsey and Donovan head-to-head, as the former inches closer to the record.
If Dempsey reaches the mark on Tuesday, he will have done in it 24 fewer games than Donovan. Dempsey is also the U.S.’ all-time leader in World Cup Qualifying goals after passing current teammate Jozy Altidore last Friday.
