We have to admit, we're happy for Nigeria. A couple weeks ago they were stranded in Atlanta and it looked likt they might not get to be in the Olympics. Saturday, they medaled after surviving, 3-2, against Honduras.
It looked like smooth sailing for the Super Eagles after two goals from Sadiq Umar and one goal from Aminu Umar put Nigeria up 3-0.
Canada have medaled. Brazil have not.
Here's how it went down:
Ashley Lawrence is a burner and as such she burned Brazil's entire defense on a counterattack and put the ball on a plate for 17-year-old (!) Deanne Rose to slot home.
Brazil absolutely dominated Sweden during their Olympic semi-final match on Tuesday. The final statistics show that Brazil had 67% of possession and nine shots on goal compared to Sweden’s two. However, Sweden rode their luck to a second consecutive penalty shootout victory following their similar upset of the USWNT.
Brazil have found their best form at the 2016 Summer Olympics men’s football tournament at just the right time. Building off their 4-0 hammering of Denmark and 2-0 quarterfinal victory over Colombia, they’ve put in their most impressive performance yet in a 6-0 drubbing of Honduras.
They now await the winner of the Nigeria vs. Germany match in the other semifinal in Sao Paulo later today.
Brazil couldn’t have asked for a better start in front of 70,000 supporters at the world famous Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro.
A few weeks ago, the Seattle Sounders hit rock bottom. They were one point from the Western Conference cellar. They were just embarrassed on national television by Sporting Kansas City and had no choice but to fire Sigi Schmid, the only coach they’d ever had in their MLS history.
All of a sudden, one of America’s great soccer cities found itself with a club that was more pretender than championship contender.
Enter Nicolas Lodeiro.
Brazil’s Olympic footballing dream received a massive lift on Saturday. Following the women’s dramatic shootout victory over Australia on Friday, Brazil’s men followed the example of Marta and company to reach the semi-finals of their own competition.
Having struggled through group play with draws against Iraq and South Africa, Neymar and his teammates sprung to life with devastating efficiency against continental rivals Colombia.
Well, that was short-lived. Argentina manager Edgardo Bauza’s trip out to Barcelona has to be deemed a resounding success with the news that Lionel Messi has decided to reverse his decision to retire from international football.
Rather than keep his country in limbo, Messi now appears set to star for Argentina in their September World Cup qualifiers against Uruguay and Venezuela — an outcome that looked impossible at the end of June.
The big kick off is here, and, wouldn’t you know it, the stars have aligned in the perfect manner for fans wanting to do nothing but watch football all weekend.
It’s as if Premier League, Liga MX, MLS, Olympic, Bundesliga and La Liga representatives all got together and did this for us. Head to the store tonight, grab all the sustenance you need to survive Saturday and Sunday, and bunker down.
Football is back.
The Honduran under-23 side has achieved the previously unthinkable in advancing from Olympic group play over favorites Argentina and Algeria. On Wednesday, Honduras overcame alleged racism by Argentina to claim a vital draw against the South American giants.
Honduran striker Anthony Lozano gave his side the lead with a 75th minute penalty and celebrated by holding his finger to his lips.
After the match, he explained his actions: “I went to shut up an Argentine who made racist comments and I didn’t like it. That’s why I made the ‘silence’ [gesture] after the goal.
When Brazilian under-23 coach Rogerio Micale suggested that Neymar could one day quit the Brazilian national team due to a lack of respect, the parallels that could be drawn with Lionel Messi’s treatment and subsequent retirement from Argentina’s setup were almost too self-evident.