Jozy Altidore, Eddie Johnson Score as US blanks Panama

Fitzgerald Cecilio

United States takes control of the CONCACAF qualifying group for the 2014 World Cup finals with a 2-0 win over Panama

Seattle, WA

Jozy Altidore and Eddie Johnson scored in each half as the United States blanked Panama, 2-0, in a World Cup qualifying match before a crowd of 40,847 at CenturyLink Field.

With their third win in four games, the Americans grabbed solo first place in the six-team CONCACAF standings with 10 points, two points ahead of Costa Rica and Mexico halfway through the competition.

The top three finishers in the 10-game regional tournament win invitations to next summer's World Cup in Brazil.

The Americans had several scoring chances early in the match but they could not completely penetrate Panama's effective defense.

Panama got its first scoring chance in the 22nd minute when Carlos Rodriguez was left alone on the left wing but he tumbled to the ground before he could get off a shot.

The Americans finally broke through in the 36th minute when Michael Bradley slipped a pass to the left wing for Johnson, who sent the ball across the front of the net to Altidore for the easy goal.

Panama's Luis Tejada appeared to tie the game in the 45th minute when he beat US goalkeeper Tim Howard cleanly but he was ruled offside on the play.

The Americas doubled their lead eight minutes after intermission when Johnson broke into the box alone and tucked a left-footed shot around Panama keeper Jaime Penedo.

In the 80th minute, the US had a chance to make it a three-goal game but DaMarcus Beasley's shot hit the goal post.

With the victory, the Americans improved to 9-1-2 all-time against Panama. They will play Honduras at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah.