Hosts France Off to Dream Start

Guinea Missed Opportunity in Opener

Hosts France weren’t at their best in their men’s Olympic soccer opener but three second-half goals powered them to a shutout win over the USA on Wednesday. Now, France take on tournament debutants Guinea in another Group A matchup.

Guinea lost 2-1 to New Zealand despite having plenty of chances and they’ll need a result here to stay alive. As we gear up for Saturday’s match, we’ll go through the France vs Guinea Olympic soccer odds, which has Les Bleus as -450 favorites in regulation time.

France U23 vs Guinea U23 Head-to-Head:

To be clear, this is Guinea U23’s first appearance in the Olympics but their senior side did qualify in 1968. France took down Guinea 3-1 in the group stage at Mexico in 1968.

However, this France vs Guinea Olympic soccer match is the first meeting between the countries’ U23 sides.

Best Yet to Come for France

France managed to get a tidy 3-0 win over the USA in their opener due to individual brilliance. The USA were very much in the match for 60 minutes and had hit the crossbar just before Alexandre Lacazette’s opening goal. Lacazette intelligently dropped into the space between lines and fired home a long-range effort.

He then assisted Michael Olise for France’s second goal and Loic Bade headed in a corner for Les Bleus’ third. Lacazette, one of France’s three overage players, along with Jean-Philippe Mateta and Loic Bade, is France’s captain and a candidate for the Golden Boot.

Olise has also scored in three straight games for France U23 and can have brilliant individual moments. This is a well-rounded France side and not too many strikers will be able to get past Bade and Castello Lukeba in France’s defense.

Soccer bets on France were a good idea for Wednesday’s match. They won as -285 favorites and France -1.5 hit at +110 odds.

As hosts, France will continue to have the crowd behind them, and their Olympic medal odds are high. They are currently +170 favorites to win their first gold since 1984 and Wednesday’s match sent a message to the rest of the field.

If France can win 3-0 while not anywhere near their best, it’ll be interesting to see what Thierry Henry’s side can do as the tournament progresses.

Point, or Three, Crucial for Guinea

Guinea should be kicking themselves after losing Wednesday’s Olympic opener 2-1 to New Zealand. It wasn’t from a lack of chances either, as Guinea outshot New Zealand 17-9. Their play was sloppy at times and after Amadou Diawara’s equalizer, in the 72nd minute, Guinea conceded just four minutes later.

All three of Guinea’s overage players play in midfield: Naby Keita, Abdoulaye Toure, and Diawara. Keita, Guinea’s captain, played very little for Werder Bremen last season but he is a Champions League winner after all.

Ilaix Moriba, Algassime Bah, and Aliou Balde are a few young players to watch. Balde had a goal called back for an offside on Wednesday and assisted on Diawara’s goal.

Entering the match, Guinea were -120 favorites to win on the back of beating Argentina 1-0 in a friendly. Now, they’ll have to wait for their first Olympic win in the U23 era.

With matches against France and the USA remaining on their Olympic Games 2024 schedule, Guinea need to pick up points in both matches.

Match Analysis & Odds

France will expect to win all three group games and the France vs Guinea Olympic soccer odds list Les Bleus as -450 favorites for Saturday’s match. If France switch off, though, there is an opportunity for Guinea to stay in this match. Guinea created a whole lot against New Zealand but need to cut out mistakes and finish their chances.

Guinea are +1200 underdogs but they shouldn’t be completely counted out, especially to get a draw (+550). France covered the goal line in their first Olympic match and France -1.5, -2 comes in at -118 odds here. Meanwhile, bettors can find Guinea +1.5, +2 at even odds.

Over 2.5, 3 goals are priced at -133 odds and France scored all three of their goals against the USA in 25 minutes in the second half. However, both teams to score is at +125 odds as France look for another shutout.

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