It could've been the dream match that football fans were hoping for, a gold-medal game between Brazil, the two-time Olympic champion, and France, the host team. It wouldn't happen; the CONMEBOL Pre-Olympic Tournament was held in Caracas, Venezuela last February. South American teams competed for the two qualifying places in the 2024 Summer Olympics. Brazil, the heavy favorite to win the tournament, lost to Paraguay, the eventual winner, and Argentina, another football powerhouse and Brazil's archrival. Brazil would miss the chance to score a three-peat. It would make the path for the French team easier. Right? Not really.
If football game fans would follow the draw closely, France and Spain would meet in the semifinals. Spain, which won the Olympic gold medal on home soil in 1992 and then finished second behind Brazil in 2020, could spoil the big celebration of local fans. Then again, France won the 1998 FIFA World Cup on home soil. The fact that players must be 23 years of age or less, to compete, might prompt some to get hooked to the UEFA Euro 2024, or the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America, but an Olympic gold medal is still something to brag about.
Ask the members of the Mexican national football team that won the gold medal in the 2012 Olympics.
It's unwise to conclude the Olympic tournament at this stage, so let's have a look at the group stage.
If senior members participate (in the Olympics), then France and the United States would advance to the knockout stage by a wide margin. But an upset can happen during the group stage. Ghana might surprise the fans, (possibly) edging the United States by one point. A penalty shootout might be the other outcome. France, on the other hand, would have little trouble in topping Group A.
Alexandre Lacazette, one of the three overaged players who will play for Les Bleus, is given the responsibility to captain the French team. And he looks forward to it.
“We all have the same ambition, to go all the way and win a medal,” the Ligue 1 forward said. “The fact that it’s a Home Games is really going to motivate us.”
Argentina, which won the gold medal in 2004 and 2008, is favored to finish the group stage in first place. Which team would finish as runner-up (to Argentina)? We would place our bets on Morocco. The senior team finished fourth at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. This Northern African country won the African Nations Champions twice. And Morocco won the gold in the 2013 Mediterranean Games. Morocco won the bronze medal in 2018 and 2022. Not a few believe that Ukraine could pull an upset, though.
Many football analysts see Argentina as the gold medal favorite. ON PAPER. Manchester City forward Julian Alvarez will lead the Argentinian team. Alvarez is on a high after leading Argentina to a Copa America title. He’s one of the players to watch out for in Paris.
Spain is the heavy favorite to finish first in Group C. An upset is a possibility, but previous editions would show that it's highly unlikely to happen. It would be difficult to predict the runner-up in Group C. As a matter of fact, the Dominican Republic, Egypt, and Uzbekistan might end up with the same win-lose ratio. Egypt has the edge over the Dominican Republic and Uzbekistan IF the Egyptian national football team's performance in international tournaments during recent years (would be the basis). But the Olympics is about national pride. The outcome of this group stage can surprise everyone.
Japan and Paraguay are expected to advance to the quarterfinals. Fans who follow the FIFA World Cup could tell that these two teams are more consistent than the other two. An under-23 format, or tourney, would hardly change the results. It's only a matter of placing, and we see Japan finishing first. It's the Olympics. Need we say more?
This is how the quarterfinals look like:
France vs. Morocco
Paraguay vs. Spain
Argentina vs. Guinea
Egypt vs. Japan
The French men's national football team, or Les Bleus, will win their quarterfinal match against Morocco. The score might be closer than most locals fans predict. On the other hand, the quarterfinal game between Paraguay and Spain can turn into a dog fight. Experience would favor the Spanish men's national football team, or Los Rojos, though. We have predicted the upper half draw. What about the bottom half? The (quarterfinal) game between Egypt and Japan would be very interesting, as the Muslim fan might be a factor in this match. We would lean to the Egyptian men's national football team. Argentina will breeze through this round.
This is how the semifinals look like:
France vs. Spain
Argentina vs. Egypt
If the 1998 FIFA World Cup is any indication, then Les Bleus would emerge victorious over Las Rojos. Some fans would lament the fact that it would happen at this stage of the tournament, but that is the luck of the draw. Argentina is the favorite in the other semifinal match, but don't expect Egypt to be rolled over. Easily. The game might go to overtime.
Gold: France
Silver: Argentina
Bronze: Spain
Many fans might wish for a gold-medal game between Brazil and France, but the France vs Argentina match isn't any less interesting. It can be one for the books, as both Argentina and France are football powerhouses. However, the home court advantage often factors in the game.
Les Bleus won the gold medal in the 1984 Olympics, the only time it would reach the final four in the Olympic stage. Forty years is a long time to wait for a second gold medal, but it couldn't be fitter, and sweeter, than doing it in front of home fans. Egypt would put up a fight, but it should be Spain to lose.
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