Germany has the competition’s best attack with 21 goals.
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Brazil has been in the Olympic tournament 12 times but lost three finals, including at London 2012.
Nigeria won gold at the 1996 Olympics with a 3-2 victory over Argentina, then won silver in 2008, falling 1-0 to Argentina in the final.
Neymar took a tumble in the proces, s but he was not the only thing to fall as his goal broke the record for the fastest goal scored in the history of Olympics, adding another feather to the forward’s already illustrious career.
The improved play of the soccer team and the beach volleyball tandem’s run come as welcome respites for the beleaguered Brazilians, who have seen the Rio Games deal with distraction, disorganization and tragedy for the last two weeks.
“I would say, in the good sense, that Neymar is a monster”, Brazil coach Rogerio Micale said. “We fully trust our defenders, just like we trust our strikers”.
Brazil will be reunited with their World Cup 2014 conquerers Germany in the gold medal match of the Olympics. “It helped us break the game open and it made everything easier”.
Brazil’s Marquinhos, left, and Honduras’ Alberth Elis vie for the ball during a semi-final match of the men’s Olympic football tournament between Brazil and Honduras at the Maracana stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Wednes. Janine Beckie took only 20 seconds to score for Canada against Australia in the women’s tournament in Rio.
In between Neymar’s goals Manchester City fans will have enjoyed Gabriel Jesus scoreing twice.
Neymar set up Gabriel Jesus’ second goal with a ideal through ball behind a defender. The men’s tournament is played among under-23 teams.
Defender Marquinhos scored the fourth goal off a corner in the 51st, shooting from close range after the defense failed to clear the cross into the area, and Luan added another in the 79th after a flawless cross by Felipe Anderson. At the centre of so much of Brazil’s nearly constant movement he masterminded the destruction of Honduras who came out with the clear intention of kicking everything in range – most notably Neymar, multiple times. “It is unbelievable, fabulous”, Germany coach Horst Hrubesch said.
After the match, some Honduran players were taking photos with Neymar on the field.
The Brazilian first division’s top-scorer, he was uncharacteristically wasteful in front of goal in the goalless draws with South Africa and Iraq and admitted he was finding it hard to sleep at night.
Neymar missed the 7-1 humiliation as he suffered two broken vertebrae in his back at the end of a brutal World Cup quarter-final win against Colombia.
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One more win will give them the coveted Olympic gold.
