Olympic Soccer Final Argentina-Nigeria

After its emphatic 3-0 victory over Brazil in the semi-finals of the Olympic Games there's no question that Argentina comes into its gold medal match with Nigeria as the firm favorite.

Olympic Final Argentina-Nigeria

But despite the quality of its squad and of its soccer, Sergio Batista's side should be wary of the exciting Africans who thrashed Belgium 4-1 in the other semi-final.

If I were to chose a winner it would definitely have to be Argentina. Argentina has an amazing squad, that looks very similar to its senior team, which is currently one of the best teams in the world (currently ranked no.5 in the world).

Argentina's Lionel Messi and Juan Roman Riquelme

After Brazil's humiliating loss, head coach Carlos Dunga admitted that "there are days when you can mark Lionel Messi and others when you can't." Messi has demonstrated his quality in the competition so far, and will surely give the Nigerian defense a huge headache.

Another player who really impressed against Brazil was Juan Roman Riquelme. There are few players in the world who can read the game like the Boca Juniors playmaker, and his positioning and passing was superb against Brazil. For those who have criticized him in the past (because he supposedly failed in Europe) his performances have shown what kind of player he is.

The Argentine league is one of the strongest and most difficult to play in in the world, and if the guy wants to play there instead of at one of Europe's top clubs it is his decision. He has achieved most of his success at Boca Juniors anyway, and playing in Argentina has given him a better relationship with the fans, and has given him more possibilities with La Albiceleste.

Nigeria's Olympic Gold Medal Chances

Now back to the gold medal match. Will Argentina win convincingly, like against Brazil, or will it be much more tighter? I reckon it will be a very even match, quite similar to Argentina's Olympic opener against the Ivory Coast. Batista's side will dominate the match, and outplay the Africans for moments, but will struggle to cope with their speed and determination down the wings. It is up to Argentina's defense to cope with what will be some Nigerian retaliation.

Another thing on Argentina's mind would be when it lost the gold medal match to Nigeria in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. It was twelve years ago, and both squads are completely different (of course), but Nigeria will be motivated by that result, knowing that despite its underdog tag it has beaten Argentina in the past.

Nigeria has yet to lose a match in its Olympic campaign (with three wins and two draws), and has looked extremely solid. In the group stage many questioned its attack for the lack of goals, but it ended up proving everyone wrong in the knock-out stage.

Olympic Final Prediction: Argentina-Nigeria

Now to the prediction. Well here's how I think the match will unfold. Argentina will take an early lead (could be through Riquelme). The Argentines will dominate, and will double its lead early in the second half. This will lead to a massive scale reaction from Nigeria, who will pull a goal back, and will lift itself looking for an equalizer, piling heavy pressure on the Argentina goal (particularly down the wings). But this will leave massive holes in its midfield and defense, and Argentina will seal a 3-1 victory on the counterattack. Will I be right? Let's wait and see.

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