Olympic Soccer 2016: Live-Stream Schedule, Predictions for Men's Medal Matches
When the young players from Brazil's 2016 Olympic men's soccer team trot onto the field for Saturday's gold-medal match against Germany, they will have 90 minutes to earn redemption for a nightmarish soccer match none of them participated in.
Two years on, and there's little reason to doubt Germany's 7-1 thrashing of host-nation Brazil in the 2014 World Cup semifinal will be on the minds of most Brazilians when their cherished men's soccer team looks to exact revenge on Saturday at the Maracana in Rio de Janeiro.
With Olympic squads made up almost entirely of under-23 players, the only holdover from Brazil's 2014 World Cup team is brilliant striker Neymar, who didn't play in the beatdown against Germany because of an injury suffered in Brazil's quarterfinal match against Colombia.
Of course, the version of Die Mannschaft that's cruised through this Olympics tournament also shares just one player, Matthias Ginter, with the World Cup-winning side, so this really is a proxy battle, but it's one Brazil will be loath to lose.
The bronze-medal match between Honduras and Nigeria doesn't have quite the same easy narrative thrust as the gold, but it will still be a meaningful result for the winner. Honduras has a chance to earn its first Olympic medal in men's soccer, while Nigeria is looking to add a bronze to a silver won in 2008 and a gold in 1996.
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Live streams for each game can be found at NBCOlympics.com. Here's the TV schedule for the games:
| Saturday, August 20 | 12 p.m. | Honduras vs. Nigeria (Bronze) | NBC Sports Network, Telemundo, NBC Soccer Channel |
| Saturday, August 20 | 4:30 p.m. | Brazil vs. Germany (Gold) | NBC Sports Network, Telemundo, NBC Soccer Channel |
Bronze Prediction
Honduras had all the trappings of an upset pick after defeating South Korea 1-0 in the quarterfinal but couldn't find any sort of defensive cohesion in a 6-0 loss to Brazil on Wednesday. The Hondurans haven't offered much going forward in these Olympics, instead relying on the goalkeeping exploits of Luis Lopez, a solid back line, and counterattacking play from Alberth Elis, Romell Quioto and Anthony Lozano to get results.
Nigeria has generally offered a bit more than Honduras going forward despite losing 2-0 to Germany on Wednesday. Mikel John Obi has been a force in the middle of the pitch, even netting a goal against Denmark in the quarterfinals.
He's also a fine leader of the squad as captain and told the Guardian Nigeria that it's been an achievement for this team to even reach this lofty stage:
Umar Sadiq has helped spearhead Nigeria's attack, coming up with a couple of chances against Germany and scoring twice in the group stages.
Honduras will do everything it can to use its speed and link-up play on the break, but if Nigeria can get out in front with a goal early, it should be able to hold on for a victory.
Gold Prediction
One can only hope that jangling nerves don't blunt the early goings of the gold-medal contest between Brazil and Germany. Both teams are in excellent scoring form heading into this match, and while their respective talents may cancel each other out and lead to a relatively benign scoring total, there should be plenty of creative, attacking soccer at the Maracana.
After a dangerously slow start to the tournament, Brazil has had little trouble finding the net in its last three games, outscoring its opponents 12-0 in that span.
Neymar has netted three times in two knockout-stage games, including the fastest goal in Olympic history, while Gabriel and Gabriel Jesus each have notched a brace in the last three games. Luan Vieira has scored three times in that same span. It's the kind of attacking verve that looks eminently capable of delivering this soccer-mad nation its first Olympic gold in men's soccer.
Germany has had little trouble scoring throughout the tournament, with Serge Gnabry and Nils Petersen serving as co-scoring leaders in Brazil with six goals apiece.
Gnabry has been playing so well it appears he's earned himself more playing time at his crowded, talented club of Arsenal, as manager Arsene Wenger told reporters on Thursday he wants to extend Gnabry's contract. After his 89th-minute goal sealed the deal against Nigeria, VAVEL's Jonny Walsh praised Petersen:
During that same game, journalist Cristian Nyari felt the young European squad showed enough spirit to beat the recent Euro 2016 runner-up:
The ruthlessness of these young Germans of course emulates the form and functionality of the senior team that so thoroughly embarrassed Brazil in the World Cup.
However, Brazil will have Neymar on the pitch this time, and he is nothing if not a difference-maker out on the field.
Yahoo Sports' Leander Schaerlaeckens wrote about just how much Neymar means to this squad:
"When Neymar can’t do it all, when he can’t lift the rest of his team above itself, the guy who’s making them competitive at all is blamed for the shortcomings of his peers. On the national team, he has no Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez and Andres Iniesta around him, like he does for Barcelona. He can’t hang out on the left wing and wait for the play to come to him. He has to drift all over the field and go find the ball. If Brazil is going to build an attack, he usually has to start it and deliver the final pass.
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An injury scare against Honduras likely sent chills down the spines of many Brazilian fans watching the game, but it seems the 24-year-old will be fully fit for Saturday's contest.
Though Neymar is seemingly involved in every successful Brazilian attack, the efforts of his teammates in the past few days cannot be understated.
If they can manage the same kind of finishing precision and overall cohesion shown against Honduras, Colombia and Denmark, then it seems that Brazil could very well defeat Germany and find that revenge is a dish best served gold.
