Uzbekistan U23 vs Spain U23 prediction 24.07.2024 | Olympic Games

• Competition: Olympic Games
• Date: Wednesday, 24th July, 2024
• Kickoff: 14:00 UK / 15:00 CEST
• Venue: Parc des Princes (Paris)

Traditionally, two days before the Olympic Games start, we will have the opportunity to watch the first round of the Football Olympic tournament. One of the first games will be between Uzbekistan and Spain, one of the favorites for the gold. The game will occur at PSG's stadium, Parc des Princes, in Paris.

Uzbekistan came to the Olympics by dominating their group at the AFC Asian Cup, winning a maximum of nine points against Vietnam, Kuwait, and Malaysia. Eventually, they reached the finals, where Japan beat them 1:0 in the stoppage time. However, since the top three teams qualified, second place was enough. Now, this will be Uzbekistan's first appearance at the Olympics, and the bookies do not give them too much chance to win the title. Before the start of the tournament, bookies offer odds of around 61 to win the title. Only the Dominican Republic, New Zealand, and Iraq have less chance to win the title, at least by the bookies.

Spain, the silver medalist from the previous Olympics, are the second favorite for the gold, behind France, with the odds off only 3.6. Spain got the opportunity to play in the Olympics after finishing 2nd in the U21 EURO, where they lost 1:0 against England in a match where they definitely deserved more. In the Olympics, Spain only had one gold medal, but that was a very long time in 1992. However, looking at their roster, they have every reason to be optimistic about the upcoming tournament.

Uzbekistan U23 vs Spain U23 pick: Spain U23 to win and cover the -1.5 AH spread

Uzbekistan were excellent in the AFC Asian Cup, but we have to acknowledge that they were super lucky in the Quarter-Finals and Semi-Finals since their opponents, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia, received red cards. And to be fair, those teams at AFC Asian Cup are not in the same tier as Spain or other best European teams.

Spain have been fantastic in the previous U21 EURO and we believe they deserved the title. Spain U21 played the prettiest football and dominated all games, but were simply unlucky in the Finals and eventually finished second. So, if they dominated teams like Ukraine, Switzerland, Croatia, Romania, and even England, in our opinion, it is fair to expect they can do the same against Uzbekistan.

Simply, Spain should be too good for an inexperienced Uzbekistan team, and anything but a big win should be a surprise for us.