Coach Samson Siasia will on Saturday make the final attempt at the Rio Olympic Games medal when he files out his wards for the losers final against Honduras, who suffered a humiliating 6-0 deficit against Brazil in the semi-final.
The national Under-23 team lost out in contention for the gold medal, after losing 0-2 to Germany in the semi-final.
Nigeria’s captain, John Obi Mikel, is still confident that his team will win a medal in Rio, despite losing to Germany on Wednesday.
Considering the manner of Honduras’ defeat at the Maracanã by Germany, the Under-23 team are sure of going home with a medal, although Mikel is likely to be keeping his teammates fully focused for the match.
Neymar scored twice, including the fastest goal in Olympic history, as Brazil set up a blockbuster revenge showdown with Germany for Olympic gold by thrashing Honduras 6-0 on Wednesday.
The sides will meet on Saturday at the Maracana just two years after Germany inflicted Brazil’s heaviest defeat of all time in a 7-1 thrashing in the 2014 World Cup semifinals at the same stadium.
World champions Germany reached their first Olympic final as a unified nation as Lukas Klostermann and Nils Petersen netted in 2-0 win over Nigeria in Sao Paulo.
Neymar had been much criticised for lacklustre displays in two 0-0 draws to start the tournament. But his transformation from the nation’s whipping boy back to golden boy was capped by his determination to open the scoring after just 15 seconds.
“Neymar is a monster. He has the gift of playing football, he delights everyone with his talent,” said Brazil coach, Rogerio Micale.
“Neymar deserves our gratitude because he pushes Brazil to a higher level,” Micale added.
