Brazil will face the United States in the final of the Olympic women’s soccer tournament after defeating world champion Spain 4-2 on Tuesday.
Gabi Portilho, Adriana, and Kerolin scored in an exciting semifinal at Stade de Marseille, with an own goal from Irene Paredes giving Brazil an early lead.
“It’s a dream, and dreams come true,” said Kerolin, whose goal during the first of more than 15 minutes of stoppage time helped Brazil fend off a late push from Spain. “I’m so excited, so excited, so excited and I’m really, really, really impressed by my teammates.”
This win gives Brazil great Marta the chance to end her impressive international career by competing for gold after missing the quarterfinals and semifinals due to suspension.
The 38-year-old Marta has stated that her sixth Olympics will be her last major tournament with the national team.
“We just knew what we came to do today, and it was a final for us today,” said Angelina, who led the Brazil team. “So, we were just very determined and we just came for the win.”
Angelina mentioned that the Brazil team needed to “celebrate a little bit” but quickly shift focus to the final.
“It was a big win. Again, Spain is an amazing team and we knew that,” she said. “So now we need to rest and we need to study a lot, and see what we can do against the U.S.”
Spain will not have the chance to add Olympic gold to the World Cup they won last year, but they still have something to aim for in Paris.
“We keep fighting for something super nice and it will continue to be the Olympics until the end,” said Spain forward Jennifer Hermoso. “A bronze medal is also very difficult to get.”
Paredes’ own goal in the sixth minute put Brazil ahead, and Portilho increased the lead in the fourth minute of first-half stoppage time.
Adriana’s header in the 71st minute highlighted Brazil’s strong performance. But even with the win looking secure, the game had more drama in store.
Salma Paralluelo scored for Spain with a header in the 85th minute, and shortly after, Alexia Putellas hit the bar with a shot from outside the box.
Kerolin made it 4-1 by shooting through Spain’s goalkeeper Cata Coll’s legs.
Paralluelo scored again in the 12th minute of stoppage time, but it was too late for Spain to make a comeback.
Brazil will face the U.S. women’s national team, the four-time champions, in the final on Saturday at Parc des Princes in Paris. Spain will compete against Germany in Lyon for the bronze medal.
Brazil has previously lost to the U.S. in the Olympic finals in Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008. Brazil secured its place in the final for the third time, making up for a 2-0 loss to Spain in the group stage.
That match also saw Marta get a red card, and Brazil found out just hours before the semifinals that their appeal against her suspension had been denied.
In the end, Brazil managed without their star player and took a significant step toward the final early on due to a mistake in Spain’s defense, where Coll’s clearance attempt hit Paredes and went into Spain’s own net.
