The 2024 Summer Olympics is set for a thrilling showdown as France faces Brasil in the women’s football quarterfinals. The match in Paris promises high stakes and intense competition, with both teams eager to advance in the tournament.
France has been impressive in the group stage, qualifying top of a challenging group. They secured victories against New Zealand and Colombia, although they were unable to hold on to an early lead against Canada, resulting in a draw.
Historically, France has never medaled in this competition, with their best finish being fourth place in 2012. The home nation is determined to change that narrative and is fueled by the motivation of playing in front of their home crowd.
Brasil has had a tougher path, qualifying as the second-best third-place team. Heartbreaking losses to Spain and Japan have marred their journey. Adding to their challenges, their star player Marta received a straight red card in their most recent match, sidelining her for the next two games.
Despite these setbacks, Brasil, with two silver medals in past competitions, is determined to extend its tournament run and provide Marta a chance to end her illustrious Olympic career on a high note.
Having successfully navigated the group phase, Les Bleues are now focused on securing their first medal in the women’s football tournament at the Olympics.
France can draw confidence from their strong record against Brazil, having won seven of their last eight encounters, including a 2-1 win in the group stage of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Their opponents, Brasil, have now advanced to the knockout rounds in all eight of their Olympic appearances despite experiencing a tricky group phase at this Olympic edition.
They began their campaign with a narrow 1-0 win over Nigeria, but their second match saw them concede two stoppage-time goals, resulting in a 2-1 loss to Japan.
The winner of tonight’s match will advance to the semi-finals on Tuesday, August 6, where they will face the winner of the quarter-final between Spain and Colombia.
Despite their recent successes, however, nobody inside the host’s camp is getting carried away. “Brasil is Brasil,” in-form striker Marie-Antoinette Katoto said, “It’s such a great footballing nation. The girls already played them last summer, so it will be a big match and we’ll be preparing for that.”
Midfield dynamo, Grace Geyoro, is also solely focused on the task at hand. “They’re a very good team, we know all about them,” she added. “You only play against big teams and big nations at the Olympics, so it’s up to us to be well prepared.”
The odds may be stacked against Brasil ahead of tonight’s blockbuster quarter-final, but they still boast a team brimming with quality. If they were to turn the tables in this one-sided rivalry, it would be a truly historic moment.
This raises the fundamental difference between fans and owners/GM/PBO The fans are under the misguided feeling that “ya gotta believe” and so there is this desperate hope that a team is only X games back for the wild card In reality the ship is sinking and in any fraction of a moment while the boat is afloat, it really is sinking Ownership has to play the long game beciase well before a trade deadline they need to decide buy/sell/stand pat, and make suitable plans regardless if the team has had a short run of winsThis team needs to move on from aging vets as best as possible and continue to replenish the pipeline regardless of the win-loss record There is nothing more sinister than the fake position of “ya gotta believe”
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