Spain secured their spot in the Olympic men’s football final for the second year in a row by defeating Morocco 2-1 at Marseille Stadium on Monday.
The Spanish team rallied after falling behind, with second-half goals from Fermin Lopez and Juanlu Sanchez allowing them to aim for gold after earning a silver medal at the Tokyo Games. They will face either France or Egypt in the final on Friday at the Parc des Princes.
“It was an intense and physically demanding match, but the team showed resilience in what was our toughest challenge yet,” said goalkeeper Arnau Tenas in an interview with Spanish newspaper AS. “We were aware of Morocco’s capabilities on both ends of the pitch.”
The first half was extended due to an injury to referee Ilgiz Tantashev, who had to be replaced. Morocco took the lead in the 37th minute when tournament top scorer Soufiane Rahimi converted a penalty kick following a foul by Pablo Barrios, marking his sixth goal of the Olympics.
After the break, Spain became more aggressive and equalized in the 66th minute when Barcelona’s Lopez capitalized on a defensive error by Morocco to score. “I hope to score in every game. The most important thing is that we progressed and secured the win,” said Lopez, who previously scored two goals in the quarterfinals against Japan. “After halftime, we played like ourselves, and I believe we deserved the victory.”
Sanchez put Spain ahead with just five minutes remaining after a well-executed team play from the right, finishing with a low shot from a tight angle. “Morocco was putting pressure on us, supported by their fans, but we knew we couldn’t let this opportunity slip away at halftime,” Sanchez remarked. “Now it’s time to recover for the big match in four days.”
Morocco nearly equalized in stoppage time but was denied, and they will now compete for the bronze medal in Nantes on Thursday.
SPAIN BEAT MOROCCO TO ADVANCE TO THE GOLD MEDAL MATCH OF THE OLYMPICS!! 🇪🇸
THEY ARE GUARANTEED A MEDAL AND WILL PLAY THE WINNER OF FRANCE VS. EGYPT 👏 pic.twitter.com/OB20176g0X
Advertisement— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) August 5, 2024
