After winning two consecutive gold medals in football, Brazil won’t be able to defend their crown here at the Olympics 2024, so there will be a new champion this year.
The Samba Boyz finished third behind Argentina and Paraguay in the final stage of the CONMEBOL qualifiers, and their fate was sealed in their 1-0 loss against La Albiceleste in February.
A total of 16 teams will vie for gold at the quadrennial meet. Group A has France, the USA, Guinea, and New Zealand, while Group B has Argentina, Morocco, Iraq, and Ukraine.
Group C, meanwhile, has Uzbekistan, Spain, Egypt, and the Dominican Republic, and Group D is composed of Japan, Paraguay, Mali, and Israel.
According to the SBOTOP Olympics 2024 odds, France, Argentina, Spain, and Japan are some of the favourites in this tournament, and getting out of their groups is the bare minimum.
France eager to defend home pitch
France will be looking to maximise their home advantage as they aim to win their second Olympic gold medal in history. The last time they won it all was at the 1984 Olympics, when they defeated Brazil in the final.
Thierry Henry will be tasked with leading Les Espoirs to glory, and he’ll have a stacked deck when they host the Olympics, with most of their talents coming from the famous Clairefontaine Academy.
Lyon’s Alexandre Lacazette and Crystal Palace’s Jean-Philippe Mateta will take two of the three available senior spots in the squad, and both of them are more than capable of generating Olympics 2024 highlights because of their ability to score.
Other than these two, Les Espoirs also have young forwards like Mathys Tel, Bradley Barcola, Rayan Cherki, and Michael Olise.
Kylian Mbappe reportedly expressed interest in joining France, but don’t expect him to play in the Olympics since he is busy with captaining France in the Euros.
France are also strong in the middle of the park, as they have Khephren Thuram, Warren Zaire-Emery, and Manu Kone there, while Lesley Ugochukwu and Enzo Millot are also options.
And at the back, there’s Leny Yoro, Malo Gusto, Bafode Diakite, and Castello Lukeba to cover for Lille goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier.
Argentina are loaded
Javier Mascherano’s Argentina could also challenge for the gold medal because of their exciting pool of homegrown talent, which includes the likes of Claudio Echeverri, Valentin Barco, and Thiago Almada.
Like Mbappe, Lionel Messi, 36, also expressed interest in playing for La Albiceleste in the Olympics one last time, but he will likely not get the green light from the management because of his nagging injuries.
With Messi out, Argentina will call on Julian Alvarez, Nicolas Otamendi, and Geronimo Rulli to take the three senior spots. Rulli and Otamendi solidify their backline, while Alvarez always has an eye on goal.
These three stars are playing supporting roles for La Albiceleste in the ongoing Copa America, so they will take the spotlight when the Olympics come.
La Liga stars to lead the way for Spain
The last time they competed in the Olympics, Spain finished the tournament second on the podium when they were beaten by Brazil in the final, so they’re out for revenge.
Santi Denia will inherit a retooled squad developed by Luis de la Fuente, now on the senior team, with most of his best players coming from La Liga.
Fermin Lopez and Samu Omorodion will lead up front for La Roja, while Pablo Barrios and Alex Baena will hold it down in the middle of the park. Pedri and Gavi are absent this time, as the former is playing in the Euros while the latter is still recovering from his injury.
Girona’s Eric Garcia and Miguel Gutierrez will help at the back alongside Valencia’s Cristhian Mosquera, and Manchester City’s Sergio Gomez is another prospect to look out for because of his versatility to play multiple positions.
No senior players for Japan
Unlike the other teams here, Japan will deploy a very young team in the Olympics since they were unable to recruit their desired senior players. National team director Yamamoto Masakuni alluded to this on Wednesday, when they officially unveiled their 18-man squad.
According to Masakuni, Japan wanted to call up Takefusa Kubo, Zion Suzuki, and Yuito Suzuki, but their mother teams from Europe didn’t want to let them play in the Olympics.
Despite this, the Samurai Blue remain a dangerous team, and they’ll be led by the dynamic duo of Shunsuke Mito and Koki Saito, who both ply their trade at Sparta Rotterdam in the Netherlands.
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