Jose Cordoba endures tough night as Copa American run ends

The new Norwich City defender found life difficult against a talented Colombia attack that included the likes of Luis Diaz, James Rodriguez and Jhon Cordoba as Panama's run in the competition ended emphatically at the quarter final stage. 

Cordoba lost his namesake at a corner after eight minutes, with the Krasnodar striker getting the wrong side of the Canaries man before nodding a header into the net. 

Colombia were three-nil ahead at the interval before Richard Rios added a fourth from distance. Cordoba then clattered into Santiago Arias inside the box in second-half stoppage time to allow Miguel Borja to cap off a fine display from Nestor Lorenzo's side. 

Despite a disappointing individual and collective night, Cordoba expressed his pride at Panama's progress in this competition as he prepares for a brief break before linking up with Norwich ahead of the Championship campaign. 

Writing on Instagram, Cordoba said: 'Today has been a very hard day because of defeat. But, at the same time, we should feel proud of what we have achieved at the Copa America, a tournament where the best players in the world compete. 

'[I feel] pride because with little, we have done a lot, and I'm grateful for the four million Panamanian inhabitants who once again supported their national team. Thanks to you all the Panamanian people for the affection and unconditional support.'

That context of Panama punching well above their respective resource was a sentiment echoed by Thomas Christensen after the full time whistle in Arizona. 

"There is no excuse. It is difficult to win a game against Colombia when you are going after them from above; few teams dare to do it. 

Cordoba joined Norwich from Bulgarian side Levski Sofia earlier this summer. (Image: Paul Chesterton/Focus Images Ltd)

"We know Colombia's quality and their strong point, the set piece. We also know that they are a bit lacking in concentration when marking. We try to show a bit of pride and we have to be realistic that we are playing against a team that has 27 games unbeaten," the Panama boss said. 

"We are not talking about confederations; we are talking about countries, and we are one of four million inhabitants. We have a natural field where you can practice, but we are not going to stop there, and we are going to request that more natural grass fields be made for us."