Spain takes gold after 5-3 win over France in Olympic men’s football final

PARIS: The United States, chasing a fifth straight Olympic men’s basketball title, are bracing for a fierce challenge from France at the hostile Bercy Arena after two stunning semi-finals set up a dream gold medal match at the Paris Olympics.
The American team, led by Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James, will face France, NBA Rookie of the Year Victor Wembanyama, on Saturday in a rematch of the Tokyo Olympic final.
The United States had swept through the group stage and the quarterfinals with a 122-87 win over Brazil, but Nikola Jokic was winning against Serbia until the very end. The Americans were down by 17 points, but in the fourth quarter they came back strong and won the semifinals 95-91.
Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry, playing in his first Olympic Games, scored 36 points, including the game-winning three-pointer with 2:24 left.
Philadelphia 76ers star players Joel Embiid, James and Kevin Durant, chasing a fourth Olympic gold medal, were all in on the late scoring spree that propelled the Americans to victory.
“The whole fourth quarter was surreal,” Curry said, but on Friday it was over and celebrated “when we have a medal around our neck — a gold one.”
US coach Steve Kerr is impressed with the momentum France has built after an away win against Japan in the group stage, followed by a convincing group defeat to world champions Germany.
With a new line-up, the French defeated the previously undefeated Canada in the quarter-finals, but in the semi-finals they took revenge against Germany.
“It’s very impressive to see how their team evolves, how they change their style in the blink of an eye,” Kerr said. “They’re very physical. They play extremely hard.
“What stands out in the video is how hard they play on both sides. We have to be prepared for that physicality and that strength. We have to not only match that, but exceed that.”
Kerr said the introduction of Isaia Cordinier and Real Madrid’s Guerschon Yabusele into France’s starting line-up had given them “more physicality, more attacking ability and more attacking firepower”.
“And they play with a lot of emotion,” Kerr said.
Wembanyama said the cheers of the jubilant fans nearly moved him to tears after France defeated Germany. Germany reduced a 10-point deficit to two in the final minute, with France claiming a 73-69 victory.
The San Antonio Spurs young star player’s shirt was covered in blood after the match due to a cut on his neck.
“In our anthem we talk about blood,” Wembanyama said. “We are willing to shed blood on the field. So it’s not a big deal. If it allows us to win gold, I offer it. Take it all.”
Curry expects France to play ‘the game of their lives’.
“It’s going to be a fight,” he said. “That’s what it’s supposed to be when you’re trying to win a gold medal … it’s just a matter of going out there and being the killers that we are.”
Curry said the star-studded American team, considered the most talented since Michael Jordan led the original Dream Team to the Barcelona Olympics, has plenty of experience playing in hostile stadiums in the NBA.
And thanks to the play-off format of the American competition, they have gained enough experience after an emotional victory to recover for another important match.
Kerr said his players will have to be strong defensively, something they failed to do toward the end of the game against Serbia, if they want to win the country’s 17th Olympic men’s basketball title.
“We’ve got to play our best defensive game (Saturday),” Kerr said. “The game went by us last night.
“A lot of guys turn into Superman in (international basketball) and we have to be prepared for that with better defense.”