Ben Pawlowski
SPAIN will clash with France in a mouth-watering men’s football gold medal match at the Olympics on Friday after defeating Morocco 2-1 in the semi-final.
La Roja went behind at the Stade Velodrome in Marseille after Soufiane Rahimi scored a first-half penalty, before Barcelona youngster Fermin Lopez equalised just after the hour mark.
Spain’s passage to Friday’s showpiece final was finally confirmed when Juanlu Sanchez, the 20-year-old defender who plies his trade for La Liga club Sevilla, bundled the ball home from close range late on.
“The moment passed so fast that I didn’t even realise it, but then when you realised that you scored the goal that puts your team in the final, I’m really happy”, said a delighted Sanchez afterwards.
The game had been delayed in bizarre circumstances after the Uzbekistani referee Ilgiz Tantashev was forced off with an injury after colliding with Spain’s Marc Pubill.
The fourth official, Glenn Nyberg, was forced to take over officiating duties after Tantashev hobbled off the field of play.
France will stand between Spain and their first football gold medal since the 1992 Olympics after the hosts beat Egypt 3-1 in extra time thanks to a brace from Crystal Palace forward Jean-Philippe Mateta.
The French side, who are managed by the legendary Thierry Henry, are the hot favourites for the gold thanks in large part to the home support which has transformed the Parc des Princes into a cauldron of noise and a side that includes seasoned veterans such as Mateta and captain Alexandre Lacazette.
However, Spain will feel confident after winning the Euro 2024 tournament just weeks ago, although the team participating in the Olympics is markedly different to the group that tasted glory in Germany last month.
Olympic rules stipulate that the men’s football competition is essentially an U-23 tournament, with sides only able to include three over-23 players in their squads.
Spain’s three overage players are defender Juan Miranda, who plays for Real Betis, captain Abel Ruiz, who plays in Portugal, and Manchester City’s Sergio Gomez.
Nevertheless, all of Spain’s 22 players were born in 2000 or later.
A win on Friday would be Spain’s second gold medal of the games after Diego Botin and Florian Trittel won the men’s 49er sailing.
Elsewhere, Spain have won three silver medals and five bronzes, placing the nation in 26th place in the 2024 Olympics medal table.
