Javier Mascherano's side were knocked out of the Paris 2024 tournament by France 1-0 in the quarter-finals at the Stade Matmut-Atlantique in Bordeaux. Titi Henry's side, who won the 1998 FIFA World Cup on home soil, were upset by the world champions, who boasted four players from the Qatar 2022 squad.

An early goal (4') from Jean-Philippe Mateta, with a near-post header against a static Albiceleste defence, proved to be the only goal of the match. The Crystal Palace F.C. Premier League player's header settled the French side, who spent the rest of the game on the counter-attack.

The Albiceleste had a number of clear chances to equalise in both halves, but France's physical strength, solid defence and lack of attacking threat from Argentina prevented them from taking the match into extra time. Argentina had twice as many shots on goal (15 to 8) and more possession (61% to 39%), but football is won with goals, and the goals came from the home side, who scored a second in extra time, although it was disallowed for a foul confirmed by the VAR.

With this victory, France confirmed their status as gold medal contenders and will have to confirm their credentials against Egypt on Monday 5 August at 18:00 CEST at the Parc Olympique Lyonnais in Lyon.

"We played a game we don't usually play, it was difficult to play against Argentina. They had possession. We played on the counter and managed to win. Mascherano put together a great team and it was very tough. The goal came very quickly, which helped," Thierry Henry told Argentine media outlet TyC Sports in perfect Spanish on the pitch.

Asked if it was revenge for his country's defeat at Qatar 2022, the Monaco F.C. product was emphatic: "No, seriously, it wasn't revenge. That was the A-team. I don't want to get into that debate. It was a quarter-final, a very tough game and I was excited about it, even though I didn't like what happened to my player at the end. It is important for us to reach the semi-finals."

The former Barcelona striker also insisted on several occasions that he did not like what one of his players had done. He was referring to Enzo Millot's taunting gesture at the end of the game (he was later sent off by referee Tantashev), which led to an embarrassing finish marred by pushing and shoving.

In the semi-finals, the hosts will meet Egypt, who had earlier eliminated Paraguay 5-4 on penalties after a 1-1 draw after 90 minutes of normal time and 30 minutes of extra time.

Earlier in the day, the story of the US men's team at the Paris 2024 Olympics came to an end after they were thrashed 4-0 by Morocco at the Parc des Princes in Paris. Marko Mitrovic's side failed to rise to the occasion, allowing the Africans to run riot on a sweltering Paris afternoon.

Goals from Soufiane Rahimi (penalty), Ilias Akhomach, Achraf Hakimi and El Mehdi Maouboub (penalty) sealed the elimination of the USA, who failed to match their best Olympic result (quarter-final at Sydney 2000). It is a moment of glory for Moroccan football six years before they host the World Cup in 2030 (along with Portugal and Spain), after reaching the semi-finals at Qatar 2022.

In Olympic terms, it will be the first time in history that the African Arabs have reached the semi-finals of an Olympic tournament, having failed to progress beyond the group stage in their previous appearances. They will meet Spain, who beat Japan.

Spain will be looking to avenge their defeat at Qatar 2022, where their Moroccan neighbours eliminated them 3-0 on penalties after a goalless draw following 120 minutes of regulation football.

The European champions and title contenders secured at least a place in the double-medal showdown with a 3-0 win over Japan at the Lyon Stadium, just over four-and-a-half hours south of the French capital.

Fermín López scored two of the Iberians' three goals, one in each half, in a display of personality, drive and talent all over the pitch. The other goal for Santi Denia's side came from Abel Ruiz, who erased the doubts raised by the defeat to Egypt in the final game of the group stage (which they had already qualified for).

France and Egypt will meet next Monday, 5 August at the Olympique Lyon stadium at 21:00 CEST. The winner of this match will go on to play for Olympic gold against the winner of the Morocco-Spain match in Marseille on the same Monday, starting at 18:00 CEST.

Reaching the final is important for both France and Spain, who both have one gold medal and a win would put them just one behind Hungary and Great Britain, who have three. For the African Arabs, it will be the first time they have done so if they achieve the ultimate glory at the Parc des Princes in Paris from 18:00 on Friday 9th.