US men’s soccer team dealt heavy defeat by host France in opening Olympic match

By Ben Church, CNN

(CNN) — The US men’s soccer team suffered a brutal return to Olympic action as it was beaten 3-0 by host nation France in its opening match of the Paris Games on Wednesday.

The soccer tournament at this year’s Olympics kicked off two days before the Opening Ceremony, with teams consisting predominantly of under-23 players. Each nation, though, is allowed three overaged players.

Playing in its first Olympic Games since 2008, the young US men’s team knew an opening match against the host would be a tough test but, for the first hour at least, it looked more than capable of causing an upset.

Led by coach Marko Mitrović, the Americans looked threatening in attack and could have scored in the first half as France struggled with the occasion.

In truth, though, wastefulness in front of goal led to the US’ downfall as France’s quality eventually shone through, much to the enjoyment of fans inside the Stade Vélodrome in Marseille.

Moments after Djordje Mihailović struck the crossbar for the US, France captain Alexandre Lacazette broke the deadlock with a fine strike in the 61st minute.

The US didn’t fold, though, and came close to equalizing just minutes later, but defender John Tolkin saw his header cannon off the crossbar.

France weathered the storm once again and doubled its lead through new Bayern Munich star Michael Olise in the 69th minute.

Defender Loïc Badé then dealt the final blow with a header in the 85th minute, giving France the perfect start to its campaign.

“I’m very pleased with the result. I feel we managed to overcome some of the stress we had. It was a tough game,” France manager Thierry Henry said after the game.

“They could have scored. They hit the post, but we managed to correct some things and, after our first goal, we played better.”

The US now sits bottom of Group A and will face New Zealand in its next match on July 27. It will then play Guinea in the final group match on July 30. Elsewhere in Group A on Wednesday, New Zealand beat Guinea 1-0.

Meanwhile, Spain beat Uzbekistan 2-1, while Japan thrashed Paraguay 5-0 in some of the other standout scores of the soccer tournament so far.

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