US PREVIEW: Tonight's Panama Game Will Be Telling for Bob Bradley's Squad (GOLD CUP)

After underachieving earlier this month in a friendly against Spain, the U.S. soccer team gave another poor performance when they lost to Panama, 2-1, on their home soil in the Gold Cup.

However, Bob Bradley's squad can make amends for the loss when the two clubs meet on tonight at Reliant Stadium in Houston in the tournament's semi-finals.

The U.S. has already somewhat recovered from the Panama loss in dominating Jamaica, but the Yanks weren't able to dominate Guadeloupe.

As for Panama, the tournament has been a success. However, the team escaped against El Salvador by winning on penalty kicks. It was not quite the performance many were expecting from Panama.

In tonight's matchup, Panama might have the psychological advantage over the U.S. after the 2-1 victory on June 11th.

The big question will be, which U.S. team will show up? Will it be the one that looked disorganized against Spain and Panama, or the one that dominated Canada and Jamaica with a well-executed attack?

In the last game against Jamaica, the U.S. had a man advantage after going up 1-0, and Jamaica didn't even look too strong playing with 11 men. The U.S. didn't get to have 90 minutes of star attacking midfielder Landon Donovan, who was sidelined for most of the match due to illness.

Clint Dempsey had his best game of the tournament against Jamaica, though he struggled to find the back of the net after some relatively easy chances.

If the Jamaica match is an example of what the U.S. has working against them, the earlier matches against Panama and Guadeloupe are what the U.S. has to overcome.

Against Panama and Guadeloupe, the U.S. seemed tentative and struggled to maintain ball possession, and get good shots on goal. Both games exposed the team's inconsistent passing skills, and even showed the holes they have in central defense.

Bob Bradley will need stronger performances from players looking to make a name for themselves with U.S. Soccer: Eric Lichaj, Clarence Goodson, Juan Agudelo, Sasha Kljestan and Alejandro Bedoya.

Panama has a young and serviceable midfield. They also have Luis Tejada up front who scored against the U.S. in the qualifying rounds, and Tejada has the ability to do it again.

Panama will likely go to a counter attack, as the game is on America soil, and the team is aware of the Yanks' ability to put pressure on opponents with their attacking midfield.

The winner of this game will face the winner of Mexico versus Honduras on Saturday at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California.