Men's Olympic Football: Three Tips From The Panel For Tuesday's Matches

Men's Olympic Football Predictions 

• The Panel Tip 1: Argentina To Beat Ukraine – 4/5 With Coral
• The Panel Tip 2: France To Win Both Halves Vs New Zealand - 31/20 With BetMGM
• The Panel Tip 3: Spain Vs Egypt Under 2.5 Goals – 16/25 With Unibet

The men’s football tournament resumes at the Paris Olympics on Tuesday - and it is crunch time for many of the 16 teams involved. 

We have now reached matchday three in France, so by the end of the day’s play we will know which eight sides have qualified for the quarter-finals. Spain and Japan have already made it through to the knockout phase and six others will join them on Tuesday. 

It's another busy day of action with eight matches taking place between 2pm and 6pm. 

Gambling.com’s experts on The Panel have checked out the latest odds on UK betting sites for three of Tuesday’s games and picked out a tip for each of them.

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Ukraine Vs Argentina (4pm)

Argentina’s shock 2-1 defeat by Morocco on matchday one left them in a precarious position in the men’s event, but a 3-1 victory over Iraq last time out got Javier Mascherano’s team back on track. 

Mascherano won the Olympics as a player and he is now hoping to do so as a manager, but Argentina cannot afford to think too far ahead at this stage of proceedings. 

All four teams in their group are level on three points heading into Tuesday’s matches, so this is a winner-takes-all encounter. Ukraine lost 2-1 to Iraq in their first outing, before bouncing back to beat Morocco by the same scoreline.

Ukraine should not be underestimated, but Argentina are odds-on favourites with betting sites for a reason. 

The senior side showed at the 2022 World Cup that defeat on matchday one is not always fatal, and we expect Mascherano’s side to advance to the quarter-finals by beating Ukraine.

There is plenty of quality at Argentina’s disposal and, in truth, they were unfortunate to lose to Morocco in a chaotic clash in Saint-Etienne. 

On the evidence we have seen so far, Argentina are the strongest team in Group B. Back them to win this game and qualify as group winners.

The Panel Tip 1: Argentina To Win – 4/5 with Coral

New Zealand Vs France (6pm)

France have six points, yet they are not mathematically through to the quarter-finals just yet. A heavy defeat by New Zealand on Tuesday, together with a win for the USA against Guinea, could see the hosts dumped out. 

Goal difference rather than head-to-head is the first tiebreaker at the Olympics, although it would take a remarkable turn of events for France to be eliminated before the quarter-finals.

Thierry Henry’s side beat the USA 3-0 on matchday one before a narrower 1-0 triumph over Guinea in their last game, and they are 3/10 with betting apps to advance to the last eight with a perfect record.

Les Bleus were not overly convincing in that match and the manager’s tactical acumen has been called into question.

Still, France’s squad is packed full of quality, with Michael Olise, Alex Lacazette and Jean-Philippe Mateta three excellent overage players. It is, in truth, hard to see how New Zealand will be able to keep France out in this one.

The All Whites are still in with a chance of advancing to the next round, but their shortcomings were exposed in a 4-1 loss to the USA last time out. France should run out comfortable winners in their final group game as they target gold on home soil.

On the face of it, this looks like a game getting involved with if you have some free bets.

The Panel Tip 2: France To Win Both Halves – 31/20 With BetMGM

Spain Vs Egypt (2pm)

Spain have already advanced to the knockout stage of the Olympics thanks to victories over Uzbekistan and the Dominican Republic and they are 9/10 favourites with football betting sites to make it a hat-trick of victories.

It is fair to say that those two opponents did not provide La Roja with the sternest of tests, but you can only beat what is in front of you and Spain have done that so far.

After winning the European Championship at senior level, Olympic gold would give Spanish football further cause for celebration this summer. For now, the team will be focused on securing top spot in their group, which they would do by avoiding defeat by Egypt.

A draw would also suit the north Africans well. With four points to their name, one more would send Egypt through to the next phase of the competition. Goals have been in short supply in their games so far, with a 0-0 draw with the Dominican Republic preceding a 1-0 defeat of Uzbekistan.

With neither team really needing a win and Egypt content to play a pragmatic brand of football, this could be a low-scoring affair. Do not be surprised to see a mutually beneficial 0-0 or 1-1 draw in this one.

The Panel Tip 3: Under 2.5 Goals – 16/25 With Unibet