Jean-Philippe Mateta scored twice, and Michael Olise added another goal as France rallied from behind to defeat Egypt 3-1 after extra time on Monday, securing a spot in the Olympic men’s football final against Spain.
Thierry Henry’s French team seemed destined for defeat in the semi-final held in Lyon after Mahmoud Saber put Egypt ahead shortly after the hour mark. However, Mateta, the Crystal Palace striker, equalized with seven minutes remaining in regular time, assisted by Olise.
Egypt’s hopes dwindled at the start of extra time when centre-back Omar Fayed was sent off, leaving them with ten players. France capitalized on their numerical advantage, with Mateta heading in the go-ahead goal.
Olise then sealed the victory in the 108th minute. France is now vying for its second Olympic men’s football gold medal, the first since 1984, and will face Spain at the Parc des Princes in Paris on Friday.
Earlier in the day, Spain qualified for the final after coming from behind to beat Morocco 2-1 in Marseille. Egypt and Morocco will compete for the bronze medal in Nantes on Thursday.
France appeared disjointed at times, missing suspended midfielders Manu Kone and Enzo Millot, the latter having received a red card in the intense quarter-final victory over Argentina. Despite this, they created the majority of chances, with defender Loic Bade hitting the post late in the first half from a corner.
Egypt absorbed pressure at the beginning of the second half before breaking the deadlock in the 62nd minute. After his first shot was blocked, Saber managed to create space and blasted a shot past French goalkeeper Guillaume Restes.
France nearly equalized immediately as Mateta’s header was tipped over the bar by goalkeeper Hamza Alaa. They then hit the woodwork twice within seconds, with captain Alexandre Lacazette’s header bouncing off the post and Bade nodding the follow-up against the crossbar.
The equalizer came in the 83rd minute, with Olise setting it up by making a driving run through the middle before assisting Mateta for the finish. France aimed to secure a winner before extra time, but a penalty appeal was denied after Fayed blocked a Bade header with his hand, following a lengthy VAR review.
As the extra half-hour commenced on a sultry evening, Egypt was quickly down to ten men when Fayed, already booked for disputing the penalty call, received a second yellow card for bringing down Desire Doue.
France took advantage of their numerical superiority when a short corner was played to Olise. He delivered a cross to the far post, where Kiliann Sildillia headed it back across the goal for Mateta to nod in his fourth goal of the tournament. Olise then added a third goal early in the second half of extra time after a clearance deflected off Doue and fell into his path.
