Uzbekistan loses the match but wins over crowd as soccer competition kicks off Paris Olympics
AP Sports Writer
PARIS (AP) — Uzbekistan lost the match but won over the crowd on Wednesday as competition at the Paris Olympics officially began with soccer matches in Paris and Saint-Etienne.
Uzbekistan fans chanted and danced throughout a 2-1 defeat to Spain, to the rhythm of a furiously fast drum beat at Parc des Princes in western Paris — once the home of French striker Kylian Mbappé when he played for Paris Saint-Germain.
Toward the end of the game they encouraged large sections of the crowd to clap in unison with their hands raised above their heads, in the style of the Viking Thunder Clap first introduced by Iceland fans at the 2016 European Championship, which was held in France.
There was also an Uzbek version of the popular soccer song “Don’t Take Me Home” — accompanied by increasingly fast drumming.
The honor of kicking off the game went to Uzbekistan captain Eldor Shomurodov, who played for Italian side Cagliari in Serie A last season. The 29-year-old Shomurodov passed the ball back to a teammate and then applauded. FIFA President Gianni Infantino met players before the game.
The first goal of the Paris Games was scored by Spain right back Marc Pubill in the 29th minute. Shomurodov equalized with a penalty late in the first half for his 41st international goal, drawing wild celebrations from Uzbekistan fans.
Argentina, playing without Lionel Messi in these Games, also got the ball rolling at 3 p.m. against Morocco in Saint-Étienne at Geoffroy-Guichard Stadium. It is nicknamed Le Chaudron (The Cauldron) for the fervent atmosphere created by passionate supporters of the local club.
Morocco was leading 2-1, with two goals from striker Soufiane Rahimi, until the 16th minute of stoppage time when Cristian Medina appeared to equalize for Argentina.
Morocco fans crashed the pitch to protest the goal, leading to an angry and bizarre scene that left the game suspended with only moments remaining.
Objects were thrown and Morocco fans were tackled by security. There were images of some Argentina players flinching when what appeared to be a flare was thrown.
And then moments before play resumed almost two hours later, the goal was disallowed by VAR for offside, meaning Morocco held on for a 2-1 victory.
Earlier, fans of Morocco and Argentina mingled outside and two Argentina fans held up a flag with a photo of the late Diego Maradona on it, along with the words “El Pibe de Oro” (the Golden Kid) — the affectionate nickname fans called the 1986 World Cup winner.
There was a joyful atmosphere in the streets leading to Parc des Princes, which is near where Olympic tennis will be played at Roland Garros, home of the French Open.
Around 150 Uzbekistan fans met outside Porte d’Auteuil subway station, waving flags, singing songs and beating a drum as they walked to the stadium accompanied by a light police presence. Uzbekistan fans, perched on the upper tier of the Boulogne section behind one the goals, made the most noise — and started chanting louder immediately after Pubill pounced from close range at the other end to put Spain ahead.
A section of Uzbekistan fans near the touchline danced and chanted “Uz-bek-is-tan” to the sound of the intensely fast drum beat for several minutes at the start of the second half. They made a huge noise when goalkeeper Abduvohid Nematov saved Sergio Gomez’s penalty with his legs. He was beaten a few minutes later by Gomez’s low shot.
Security was much higher with a large police presence outside the same stadium later Wednesday, when Israel played Mali in Group D amid ongoing tensions in Gaza.
Israel’s national anthem was loudly jeered before the game, which finished 1-1 and saw some fans raising Palestine flags.
Eight soccer matches were played Wednesday, two days before the opening ceremony. The rugby sevens also had 12 matches, starting at 3:30 p.m., with Australia beating Samoa 21-14 at Stade de France, the national stadium, before host France drew 12-12 with the United States and then won 19-12 against Uruguay.
Archery and handball also begin play before Friday’s opening ceremony, with preliminary action Thursday.
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