MARSEILLE, France: Brazil will face the United States in the final of the Olympic women's soccer tournament after beating world champions Spain 4-2 on Tuesday.
Gabi Portilho, Adriana and Kerolin scored in a thrilling semi-final at the Stade de Marseille after an own goal by Irene Paredes had put the two-time silver medallists ahead.
“It's a dream and dreams do come true,” said Kerolin, whose goal in the first of more than 15 minutes of stoppage time helped prevent a late comeback by Spain. “I'm so excited, so excited, so excited and I'm really, really, really impressed with my teammates.”
The victory means the great Brazilian Marta has the chance to end her glittering international career with a fight for gold after being banned from the quarter- and semi-finals.
Marta, 38, has stated that her sixth Olympic Games will be her last major tournament with the national team.
“We just knew what we wanted to do today and for us today was a final,” said Angelina, who captained the Brazilian team. “So we were very determined and just wanted to win.”
Angelina said the Brazilian team needed to “celebrate a bit” but quickly focus on the final.
“It was a big win. Spain is a great team, we knew that,” she said. “Now we have to rest and learn a lot to see what we can do against the USA.”
Spain will not get the chance in Paris to further consolidate its place at the top of women's football by winning Olympic gold at the World Cup last year.
But there is still a lot at stake at the Games in Paris.
“We're still fighting for something really beautiful and it will be the Olympic Games until the end,” said Spanish striker Jennifer Hermoso. “A bronze medal is also very difficult to get.”
Brazil took control through a Paredes own goal in the sixth minute and Portilho doubled the lead in the fourth minute of first-half stoppage time.
Adriana's header in the 71st minute underlined Brazil's dominance, but even though victory seemed certain, there was still much more drama to come.
Salma Paralluelo reduced the deficit for Spain with a header in the 85th minute and almost at the same moment Alexia Putellas hit the crossbar with a shot from outside the penalty area.
Kerolin increased the score to 4-1 – he shot through the legs of Spanish goalkeeper Cata Coll.
Paralluelo scored her second goal in the 12th minute of injury time, but by that point it was already too late for Spain to catch up.
Brazil will face the four-time US women's national team in the final at the Parc des Princes in Paris on Saturday.
Spain will play against Germany for bronze in Lyon.
Brazil has already lost to the USA twice in Olympic finals – in Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008.
They secured a place in the final for the third time after atoning for a 2-0 defeat to Spain in the group stages of the tournament.
Marta was also shown the red card in that match and Brazil received confirmation that its appeal against her suspension had been rejected just hours before kick-off of the semi-final.
In the end, Brazil did not need their best player on this occasion and took a big step towards the final early on after a fatal mess in the Spanish defence when Coll – under pressure from Priscila – tried to clear the ball, but it bounced back into his own net off Paredes.
Brazil had the most chances, kept coming in front of goal and asserted their superiority just before half-time through Portilho, who shot into the bottom corner after a cross from Yasmim.
Adriana increased the lead to 3-0 after her first shot from five metres hit the crossbar and she then headed over the goal after a header from Portilho.
Spain, who had recovered from a 2-0 deficit to beat Colombia in the quarter-finals, gave their fans hope with Paralluelo's header, but when Kerolin put Brazil 4-1 ahead, a second goal from Paralluelo was little more than a consolation.
“We showed the world that we have a young team and a team that has a very good tactical understanding, that is competitive and will always be that way – competitive,” said Brazil coach Arthur Elias. “Brazil is a source of great pride in women's football.”
