Brazil, Germany to get World Cup rematch in men's Olympic gold medal match
Two years ago, Brazil met Germany in the World Cup semifinals only to get embarrassed, 7-1, on home soil. But now Brazil will get a chance for a redemption of sorts -- the Olympic gold medal game, again on home soil.
After Brazil beat Honduras in the first semifinal of the games, Germany topped Nigeria to set up the two world powers for a tasty men's final.
Nobody who played in that World Cup semifinal will be on the pitch in the gold medal match. Neymar and Matthias Ginter were the only players on both rosters, but Neymar missed the World Cup match with an injury, while Ginter didn't make it off the bench for Germany at any point in the tournament two years ago.
Still, Brazil will be hoping to get a modicum of revenge. The Olympics -- which is predominantly a U-23 tournament -- pales in comparison to the World Cup, but claiming a gold medal on home soil and doing it against Germany would be a nice feather in the cap. At the least, their most recent memory of the national team in a tournament on home soil won't be embarrassment at the hands of Germany. The sting will have been numbed, even if just a bit.
Of course, there is the flip side, where Germany want to continue taunting Brazil. An Olympic gold to go along with a World Cup could be a nice way to do just that.
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