Spain beats France to end golden summer

Sergio Carmelo scored twice in extra time as Spain beat France 5-3 to claim gold in the Olympic men’s football final

Victory at the Parc des Princes capped a golden summer for Spanish football, following the senior team’s European Cup triumph last month.

Spain, which lost to Brazil in the Tokyo Olympics final three years ago, became the first European men’s football gold medalists since winning the title in Barcelona in 1992, when Luis Enrique and Pep Guardiola were also there in.

France fought back from 3-1 down to take the game into overtime, and in the third minute of stoppage time, Philippe Matata equalized with a penalty kick.

But substitute Carmelo, who plays for Madrid’s minor side Rayo Vallecano, calmly got past French goalkeeper Guillaume Restes in the 100th minute and scored the second goal in the first minute.

Spain’s victory marked a personal double for Fermín Lopez and Alex Baena, who are both part of the Euro 2024 winning squad.

Barcelona star Lopez scored twice and Baena scored Spain’s other goal in a tense 10-minute first half, after Enzo Milot opened the scoring for France. Leading 3-1 at halftime.

But the game took a turn when France struck back in the final seconds through Magnis Akliusz and Jean-Philippe Mateta, converting a penalty in the third minute of stoppage time to put the game away. Drag into overtime.