MANCHESTER, England — The only top contender still left in the men's Olympic football tournament, Brazil has no excuse to leave the London Games without the gold medal. First, though, it will have to get past South Korea in the semifinals on Tuesday.
Brazil brought most of its top players to the Olympics and has been dominant so far, getting more wins and scoring more goals than any other team. South Korea, meanwhile, just barely made it through the first stage, backed by its strong defense, but is hoping for a second consecutive upset to add to its surprise elimination of host Britain in the quarterfinals.
The winner of the match at Old Trafford will play for the gold against either Mexico or Japan, which will face off in London in the other semifinal.