Rio Olympics: Neymar leads Brazil into men’s soccer semifinals

Neymar

 

Neymar scored his first goal of the Rio de Janeiro Olympics on Saturday, giving Brazil a 2-0 win over Colombia and a spot in the semifinals of the men’s soccer tournament.

Neymar scored from a free kick in the 12th minute, sending a right-footed shot through the wall and into the lower right corner of the net. Luan added the second in the 83rd at the Arena Corinthians with a shot from outside the area, keeping alive Brazil’s hopes of winning the soccer gold medal for the first time.

The game, a sort of rematch from the 2014 World Cup quarterfinals, was heated from the start, with hard fouls from both teams. The benches cleared just before halftime after a vicious foul committed by Neymar, who lashed out after being harassed by opponents nearly every time he touched the ball.

“They really came playing hard, but we were able to overcome the pressure,” Brazil forward Luan said. “We were able to get the early goal and that helped us come away with a great victory.”

Brazil will next face Honduras, which reached the Olympic semifinals for the first time by defeating South Korea 1-0 at the Mineirao Stadium in Belo Horizonte.

In the other semifinal match, 1996 Olympic champion Nigeria will face Germany, which is playing at the Olympic tournament for the first time since 1988 — when Jurgen Klinsmann was in the squad. Germany routed Portugal 4-0 in Brasilia, while Nigeria beat Denmark 2-0 in Salvador.