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BEIJING — Argentina, despite being without talisman Lionel Messi, are considered to stand a good chance of winning a record-equaling third men's football gold medal at the upcoming Paris Olympics.
Argentina head coach Javier Mascherano, who won gold as a player in 2004 and 2008, is aiming for glory, as he called up four World Cup winners to his squad, including striker Julian Alvarez and defender Nicolas Otamendi, reported Xinhua.
Olympic men's football is an under-23 tournament, but each team is allowed up to three overage players.
Messi, 37, who helped the South American side win gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, will not play in the Paris edition, citing a heavy workload.
Clubs are not required to release their players to compete at the Olympic Games, as unlike other major international football tournaments, the Games take place outside the official FIFA international window.
In 2008, Barcelona won an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport to prevent Messi from playing in Beijing. It was reported that after Pep Guardiola, then-head coach of Barcelona, intervened, the La Liga club eventually gave the green light, and Messi went on to win gold with Argentina in his only Olympic campaign.
The Olympic men's football tournament serves more as a platform for emerging talents rather than established stars, with traditional football powerhouses not necessarily being among the favorites.
Nigeria and Cameroon triumphed respectively in 1996 and 2000. In 2012, Mexico won gold in London with a team mostly comprising domestic players.
The past 20 years has seen the dominance of South American teams at this event, with Brazil and Argentina winning two golds each since 2004.
Brazil, back-to-back champions in 2016 and 2020, have failed to qualify for Paris, meaning Argentina can equal the record held by Hungary and Britain if they win their third Olympic gold.
Claudio Echeverri is a player to watch. The 18-year-old, who will move to Manchester City next season, is an attacking midfielder and is expected to play a key role in Argentina's campaign.
Argentina have been drawn into Group B with Morocco, Iraq and Ukraine.
France and Spain, the other two favorites behind Argentina, play in Group A (with the United States, Guinea and New Zealand) and Group C (with the Dominican Republic, Egypt and Uzbekistan) respectively. Group D comprises Paraguay, Israel, Japan and Mali.
Argentina are to play Morocco in their opening game in Saint-Etienne when the tournament kicks off on July 24, two days ahead of the Olympics' opening ceremony. The final will be held on August 9 at Parc des Princes in Paris.
The men's event alternates days with the women's at cities across France, which also include Marseille, Bordeaux, Lyon, Nantes and Nice.
Unlike the men's event, the women's competition brings together the finest players from the 12 participating teams.
Top-ranked Spain are vying to be the first team to win an Olympic gold medal after capturing the World Cup title.
Confusion ensued after La Roja were crowned at last year's World Cup, throwing the team into tumult.
Spanish federation president Luis Rubiales stepped down in disgrace after being accused of forcibly kissing Jenni Hermoso during the World Cup victory celebrations. Also gone is World Cup-winning coach Jorge Vilda, a controversial figure who has been replaced by former national team player Montse Tome.
Spain have to put these scandals behind them and pull together before embarking on their Olympic campaign. With FIFA World Player of the Year and Ballon d'Or winner Aitana Bonmati, Alexia Putellas and Salma Paralluelo, this talent-packed squad will be the one to beat in Paris.
In their opening Group C game on July 25, Spain will take on Japan, against whom they had lost 4-0 in a group match at last year's World Cup. The other two teams in the group are Nigeria and Brazil.
The Paris Olympics will probably witness Brazilian great Marta's swansong. The 38-year-old, having played in the past five Olympics, plans to retire from the national team after the Games.
The most successful team in the Olympics is the United States with four gold medals. But from the 2016 Rio Olympics, where they lost to Sweden on penalties in the quarterfinals, their dominance began to slip.
Five years later in Tokyo, they were defeated by Sweden again in a group match before being knocked out by eventual gold medalists Canada in semifinals.
Their head coach Emma Hayes opted for younger strikers when selecting her 18-member squad for Paris, dropping two-time World Cup winner Alex Morgan - a 34-year-old who has scored 123 goals in 224 appearances for the national side.
The United States will face Zambia on July 25 in Group B, which also features 2016 Olympic gold medalist Germany and Australia.
Apart from Morgan, another noticeable absentee from the Paris Olympics will be Christine Sinclair, Canada's longtime captain who retired from international duty last year after Canada surprisingly failed to qualify for the knockout stages of the World Cup.
Canada are to start their campaign against New Zealand in a Group A match on July 25 in Saint-Etienne. France and Colombia are their next two group oppositions.
The women's football final is set to be held at Parc des Princes in Paris on August 10, one day after the men's final.