Brazil face Spain in a mouthwatering final at Tokyo 2020 to decide who will claim the gold medal. The Selecao won a thrilling penalty shoot-out against Mexico in the semi-finals, while Real Madrid’s Marco Asensio hit a stunner to deny Japan in extra-time.
El Tri rallied to down Japan in the bronze medal match, with goals from Sebastian Cordova, Johan Vasquez and Alexis Vega earning a 3-1 victory, but now Brazil will hope to defend their title from Rio 2016.
Led by 38-year-old Dani Alves, the Sao Paulo star and former Barcelona right-back admits he is on the brink of “achieving a dream”: “Every high performance athlete wants to be here. Being here, being able to represent my people, at football, is an honour for me. Now we focus on the main chapter of this mission and of history.
“Those that know me know I have a youthful spirit and as it is my first time I will have the same sort of experience as the young lads. Even though I have enjoyed some big moments in my career, given this is my first time at the Olympics, I feel some butterflies in my stomach.”
La Roja have carried over momentum from Euro 2020, where they reached the semi-finals and Barcelona’s Pedri shone to prove himself as one of the finest young players in the world, with Luis de la Fuente’s side looking to emulate the side that won gold at Barcelona 1992 - follow live minute-by-minute updates from the match below:
