PARIS: Egypt and the Dominican Republic battled their way to a scoreless draw on Wednesday in their opening Group C match on the first day of the men’s soccer tournament at the Paris Olympics.
The Dominicans, who are playing for the first time ever in the football competition at the Games, had the ball in their opponents’ net in the 13th minute, courtesy of Peter Gonzalez, but the referee ruled it out over a foul Egyptian defender Hossam Abdelmajeed.
Both teams had chances throughout the match, which took place at Nantes’ Stade de la Beaujoire, but goalkeepers Xavier Valdez and Hamza Alaa were not to be beaten on the day. Alaa made a great save to tip away a Gonzalez free-kick in the 70th minute, and his Egyptian teammates worked hard to grab a winner late on but the Dominican defense refused to yield.
Egypt are competing in the Olympics football contest for the 13th time, the most of any African nation, but has never finished higher than fourth place, which it achieved in Amsterdam in 1928 and Tokyo in 1964. The team made reached the quarter-finals at Tokyo 2020, losing 1-0 to Brazil.
It had been hoped that Mohammed Salah might join the Egyptian side as a senior player at the Olympics but he declined to do so, opting instead to focus on Liverpool’s preseason preparations. Former Arsenal midfielder Mohammed Elneny captained Egypt.
Earlier, Spain, silver medalists in Tokyo three years ago, kicked off their Group C campaign with a 2-1 victory over Uzbekistan at the Parc des Princes. Their squad included two members of their Euro 2024-winning squad: Alex Baena and Fermin Lopez.
Egypt and Dominican Republic grind out goalless draw in their Paris Olympics opener
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Egypt and Dominican Republic grind out goalless draw in their Paris Olympics opener
- Peter Gonzalez has the ball in the net for the Dominicans in the 13th minute but referee disallows it for a foul on Egyptian defender Hossam Abdelmajeed
- Egypt are competing in the Olympics football contest for the 13th time, the most of any African nation, while the Dominican Republic are making their debut
Vinicius hits winner as Real Madrid eliminate Benfica after racism row
- Benfica gave the record 15-time champions a rough ride but fittingly Vinicius, who never hides from the spotlight, scored on 80 minutes to effectively end the contest
MADRID: Vinicius Junior scored the winner on the night as Real Madrid beat Benfica 2-1 in the Champions League on Wednesday, progressing 3-1 on aggregate to the last 16.
It was the Brazilian forward’s superb goal which separated the teams in a first leg marred by an incident of alleged racial abuse aimed at him by Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni, who denies it.
Jose Mourinho’s side were still alive in the play-off round tie and took the lead early on at the Santiago Bernabeu through Rafa Silva, although Madrid’s Aurelien Tchouameni swiftly levelled.
Benfica gave the record 15-time champions a rough ride but fittingly Vinicius, who never hides from the spotlight, scored on 80 minutes to effectively end the contest.
It was Portuguese coach Mourinho’s first time back at the Santiago Bernabeu since he coached Real Madrid from 2010-2013, but he could not lead his team from the dug-out because of suspension.
After a week dominated by the fall-out from the first leg, Vinicius lined up for Real Madrid alongside Gonzalo Garcia, who stepped in for injured French superstar Kylian Mbappe.
Benfica were without banned midfielder Prestianni, after an appeal against his provisional one-game sanction was turned down earlier on Wednesday, with UEFA still investigating the incident.
Madrid hung a large banner reading “no to racism” at one end, with the game played under the shadow of what happened last week in Lisbon.
There were boos for Vinicius from the visiting Benfica fans and he prodded wide in the early stages, appealing in vain for a penalty as Nicolas Otamendi collided with him after he got his shot away.
Benfica took a deserved lead in the 14th minute as Madrid defender Raul Asencio clumsily turned the ball toward his own goal.
Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois kept the ball out but Silva was on hand to bundle home from close range.
Stung into action, Madrid pulled level two minutes later through Tchouameni. The French midfielder finished with aplomb from the edge of the box from rampaging team-mate Federico Valverde’s cross.
Madrid thought they had gone ahead on the night when Arda Guler stabbed home a loose ball after Garcia’s shot was blocked, but the Spanish striker had edged offside and it was disallowed after a VAR review.
Vinicius settles it
Courtois made a fine save from Richard Rios before the break, as Benfica turned up the pressure.
Silva hit the bar with a deflected effort before the hour mark as Mourinho’s side at times pinned back the hosts.
Madrid were dealt a set-back as Asencio was forced off on a stretcher after colliding with Eduardo Camavinga.
It had to be Vinicius who settled the tie, though, and Valverde played him scuttling through on goal, with the Brazilian calmly rolling a low shot past goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin.
Vinicius produced another celebratory dance by the corner flag, as he had done in the first leg in the run-up to the flashpoint with Prestianni, and to the chagrin of Mourinho.
This time, the 25-year-old just had thousands of jubilant fans jumping up and down before him, and his goal confirmed Madrid’s passage to the last 16.
