Stunning goals from Alexandre Lacazette and Michael Olise helped France to a 3-0 victory over the USA in the men’s Olympic soccer tournament on Wednesday.
Loïc Badé scored the third goal with a late header to seal the win. The match looked uncertain until former Arsenal striker Lacazette scored from distance in the 61st minute in Marseille.
The host nation was lucky against an American team that saw Đorđe Mihailović’s shot hit the crossbar while the game was still scoreless, with Lacazette’s goal coming almost immediately afterwards.
On a wild opening day for Olympic soccer, Morocco defeated Argentina 2-1 in a match that was stopped for about two hours as fans spilled onto the field deep into injury time. And the Americans looked set to pull off another upset as they repeatedly opened up France.
The US created plenty of chances and worked the ball well in midfield to cut Thierry Henry’s team open, but they never got closer than Mihailović’s effort, and France made the most of their fortune.
Lacazette fired the ball low from about 20 yards past American goalkeeper Patrick Schulte.
Eight minutes later, Bayern Munich’s new signing Olise curled a long-range shot into the same corner. Badé’s 85th-minute header effectively decided the match and saw France move to the top of Group A, ahead of New Zealand, who beat Guinea 2-1.
The U.S. entered the tournament with high expectations, naming an experienced team with hopes of a medal and giving playing time to a group of youngsters vying for a spot on the 2026 World Cup roster. Head coach Marko Mitrović called up an unusually experienced team for the Paris Games, where participating nations are limited to fielding squads composed primarily of players under the age of 23, with only three exceptions for over-age players.
The U.S. squad features players with 114 combined senior caps – and Mitrović used two of his spare centre-back spots, Walker Zimmerman and Miles Robinson, to try to give a squad full of young, attacking options a solid foundation at the back. The plan looked promising in the opening round, but Mitrović’s team was ultimately undone by France’s quality on the ball.
France will play another match against Guinea on July 27, and on the same day the USA will face New Zealand.