Wednesday’s action at the men’s Olympic soccer tournament featured several twists, including the hosts coming up with a massive result when they needed it most.
Brazil advanced to the quarterfinals with a 4-0 win over Denmark in the team’s final Group A match. A brace from Gabriel Barbosa paced the Brazilians to their first win of the 2016 Olympics, after previously tying their opening two matches, while Gabriel Jesus and Luan each added tallies.
Meanwhile, reigning champion Mexico was eliminated from the tournament after suffering a 1-0 loss against South Korea. The unfavorable result pushed El Tri to third place on four points in Group C, leaving Mexico behind South Korea and Germany.
Germany capped off its group stage run with a dominating 10-0 win over Fiji, who bail out of the competition after allowing 23 goals over the three matches. Despite the convincing win, the Germans finished second in Group C, two points behind South Korea.
The quarterfinals will be played on Saturday, with all eight teams in action:
Portugal vs. Germany (12 p.m.)
Nigeria vs. Denmark (3 p.m.)
South Korea vs. Honduras (6 p.m.)
Brazil vs. Colombia (9 p.m.)
I think that the quarter finals are an interesting mix: 3 UEFA; 2 CONMEBOL and 1 each from CONCACAF CAF and AFC. it is also interesting from a confederation standpoint, that 2 UEFA teams and the 2 CONMEBOL teams play each other, and the semifinals will also be a mix of teams from different confederations. Good for soccer I think.