Egypt vs Paraguay Olympic Soccer Quarter-Final: Tight Match

Winner Takes on France or Argentina

On Tuesday, Egypt shocked Spain and picked up a 2-1 win in the Olympic men’s soccer Group C finale. That sets up Friday’s Egypt vs Paraguay Olympic soccer Quarter-Final as Paraguay are in their first Olympic knockout stage since 2004.

At Athens 2004, Paraguay won the silver medal and they’ll be looking for another medal. For the third Quarter-Final match on the Olympics schedule, we’ll run through the odds for Friday’s match.

Egypt vs Paraguay Head-to-Head

This will be the first-ever Egypt vs Paraguay Olympic soccer match. All-time, Paraguay are 1-2 against African teams in the Olympics. Meanwhile, Egypt are 1-3 against South American sides in their U23 Olympic history.

Egypt: Defying Expectations

The Egyptians were one of three teams to finish the men’s soccer group stage without losing. After a disappointing 0-0 draw against the Dominican Republic in their first match, Egypt picked up wins over Uzbekistan and Spain.

Egypt were underdogs in the matches versus Uzbekistan and Spain and most 2024 Paris Olympics predictions had them finishing in second place in the group.

Still, the unexpected 2-1 victory over Spain sealed first place in Group C and Egypt are now in back-to-back Quarter-Finals.

• On Tuesday, Ibrahim Adel scored both of Egypt’s goals and the Pharaohs won as +475 moneyline underdogs.

Plus, Egypt conceded just one time in the group stage and are a difficult team to score on.

One concern for Egypt is that a few of their players came off injured on Tuesday. Ahmed Eid, Mohamed Shehata and Omar Fayed’s statuses are worth monitoring. Bettors should note that Egypt haven’t reached the Olympic Semifinals since Tokyo 1964.

Still, this is a side that has already defied expectations. They’re capable of making a run but they’d face either France or Argentina in the Semis.

Paraguay: Defensively Vulnerable

Brighton and Hove Albion’s Julio Enciso was a late addition to Paraguay’s roster and the attacker is a joy to watch.

When Enciso picks up the ball in space he’s thinking about shooting from range or beating his man and his direct style of play is refreshing. Enciso was on the scoresheet in Paraguay’s 4-2 win over Israel last Saturday.

The win was crucial for Paraguay, as they fell 5-0 in their opener after going down to ten men in the first half. Needing a result on Tuesday to advance to the Quarter-Finals, Marcelo Fernandez scored the game’s only goal as Paraguay defeated Mali 1-0.

The pre-tournament soccer betting odds listed Paraguay as Group D favorites but they had to settle for second place behind Japan.

Fernandez scored three group stage goals and Paraguay had a whopping 61 shot attempts in the group stage.

While they do pose an attacking threat, Paraguay are vulnerable in defense and conceded seven goals in their first two group games. Only New Zealand conceded more times than Paraguay in the group stage.

Egypt vs Paraguay Match Analysis & Odds

This looks to be the closest Quarter-Final matchup on paper. Right now, the Egypt vs Paraguay Olympic soccer odds list Egypt as +150 moneyline favorites and Paraguay at +170.

• A draw, and two subsequent extra time periods, are reasonably likely, at +220.

Overall, Egypt are priced at -125 odds to qualify for their first Semifinal in 60 years and Paraguay are at -105. Egypt have kept two clean sheets so far but both teams to score comes in at -125 odds. Meanwhile, the over/under goal total is currently 2.5 but juiced to go under at -145.

While Enciso is the one to watch on Paraguay, Ahmed Zizo is the Egyptian player most likely to create something out of nothing in what could be a match decided by moments of individual brilliance.

For soccer betting news, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.

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• Brazil vs Spain Women’s Soccer: Spain Tipped for Perfect Round
• Argentina Faces Ukraine in a Chaotic Group B
• Spain vs Egypt Olympic Soccer: Group C Decider
• Canada Win Opening Match Despite Off-Field Circus

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