In the dim light of dawn on Wednesday (31), the group stage of the Olympic men's soccer team was settled. Despite a comfortable 2-0 win over Ukraine, Argentina finished slightly behind Morocco, who tied for the lead in points scored and goals conceded, but had to settle for second place in the group, going head-to-head with a strong host team like France. Given the recent conflict between the two sides over racial discrimination, sparks are sure to fly in this match.
Argentina won today thanks to second-half goals from Tiago Amanda and 18-year-old starlet "Nueva Mes", while Morocco beat Iraq 3-0 in the other match. As a result, Argentina and Morocco have both won two matches and lost one, with six points and six goals conceded, but Morocco, which narrowly beat Argentina 2-1 in the first round of the group stage, has the better record to advance to the last eight, where it will compete with the United States for second place in Group A.
In Group A, France, despite not choosing to walk the line, swept New Zealand 3-0 to advance to the last eight with three wins and no fear of facing Argentina.
It is worth noting that Spain and Japan met again in the last eight. Three years ago, Spain eliminated Japan in extra time, but ultimately lost the silver medal to Brazil in the final. Egypt and Paraguay are also expected to meet in another last-eight clash.
The Olympic Men's Soccer Elite 8 schedule is as follows:
Morocco Men's Olympic Soccer Team vs USA Men's Olympic Soccer Team
Japan Men's Soccer vs Spain Men's Soccer
Egypt Men's Olympic Football Team vs Paraguay Men's Olympic Football Team
France Men's Olympic Football Team vs Argentina Men's Olympic Football Team
