The U.S. men's soccer team will face a tough welcome in its first Olympic appearance in 16 years.
Not only will the U.S. have to face hosts France in the group stage, but it will also be their first game of the tournament.
At least then the game will be over, and the U.S. will then have winnable games against Guinea (which they beat 3-0 in March, but their Guinea team at the time was not as good as their Olympic team) and New Zealand.
Jack McGlynn, Nathan Harriel and Paxton Aaronson all have a shot at surviving their groups and making it to the quarter-finals, which would be a big boost for the program and the excitement that comes with the Olympics.
” read more: Union's Jack McGlynn selected to U.S. Olympic soccer team opens door to stardom
But then the real pain comes: The draw means the second-placed U.S. team in Group A will face the winner of Group B, led by Argentina.
That means they're just as likely to face gold medal contenders as they are the home side. Argentina's overage players include striker Julián Alvarez (still a youth at 24) and center back Nicolas Otamendi (36), both of whom were recently part of the Copa America-winning team.
Their teammates include fast-rising 18-year-old playmaker Claudio Etxeberri and familiar midfielder Thiago Almada, who just moved from Atlanta United to Brazil's Botafogo for an MLS-record $21 million fee and is also eyeing a future move to France's Lyon.
If the U.S. had been drawn in a group with the Dominican Republic, the tournament's other CONCACAF team, it would have been in the same group as Spain, which would have also been a tough test, but the quarterfinals would have been a much easier matchup, with the winner of the group that included Israel, Japan, Mali and Paraguay.
The expectation here is that the United States will win the games it can win and play valiantly in the others.
” read more: Nathan Harriel's years of hard work have paid off as he has earned a spot on the U.S. Olympic men's soccer team.
Argentina, France and Spain are the favourites to win medals, but France will have to beat two other countries to win the championship. Les Bleus With Alexandre Lacazette and Michaël Aulies at the forward positions, they are a powerful attacking force, but are a bit short on manpower in other positions.
Because the Olympics is essentially a youth tournament, clubs don't have to sell players like they do for the World Cup, Euros, Copa America etc., which meant France manager Thierry Henry couldn't sign all the players he wanted, despite his own stature and importance in his home tournament.
That makes Argentina a strong favorite to win the gold medal, which would be their first Olympic title since 2008, when the team featured a 21-year-old Lionel Messi (as well as 20-year-old Sergio Aguero, 20-year-old Angel Di María and 30-year-old Juan Roman Riquelme).
This team may not have Messi, but it does have plenty of talent and a strong player at the top in Alvarez. It's his turn to lead the way, and he looks ready to play that role for his country for the foreseeable future.
” read more: The addition of Paxten Aaronson adds three union-affiliated players to the U.S. men's Olympic soccer team.
Medal Predictions
Money: Argentina
Silver: France
bronze: Spain
U.S. Men's Olympic Schedule
Times listed are Philadelphia time. All NBC video streaming of the Olympics is available for free at NBCOlympics.com, with pay-TV provider authentication, or with a subscription on Peacock.
July 24: Olympic group stage, match against France in Marseille, 3 p.m. (USA Network, Telemundo 62)
July 27: Olympic group stage, match against New Zealand in Marseille, 1 p.m. (USA Network, Telemundo 62)
July 30: Olympic group stage, match against Guinea at Saint-Étienne, 1 p.m. (USA Network, Telemundo 62)
August 2: The quarter-finals will take place in Bordeaux (if group winners) at 3pm (Universo, TBD) or in Paris (if runners-up) at 9am (Telemundo, TBD).
August 5: The semi-finals will air in Lyon (for group winners) at 3 p.m. (USA Network, Telemundo 62) or Marseille (for group runners-up) at noon (E!, Telemundo 62).
August 8: Bronze medal match in Nantes, 11 a.m. (English not available, Telemundo 62)
August 9: Gold Medal Game in Paris, noon (USA Network, Telemundo)
