Tokyo 2020 Olympics Daily Review – 22 July 2021

South Africa’s men’s football team disappointed in a 1-0 defeat to Japan which hardly saw David Notoane’s men trouble the opposition defence. A piece of magic from Takefusa Kubo sealed the game, but the scoreline probably flattered South Africa.

Olympics 2020 – 10 Stars Set to Shine in Tokyo

Veeeeery frustrating performance. Some good solid individual defensive performances but that’s to be expected when a team defends for 90% of the game. So little offered on offense. Don’t think Makgopa received a ball near the box. Gotta hope for more against ?? https://t.co/C2nKUfqSYD

— Rob Delport (@FMSouthAfrica) July 22, 2021

Earlier, Egypt executed a defensive masterclass as they held Spain to a 0-0 draw, an impressive result against a team widely viewed as the pre-tournament favourites.

This is good news for Brazil, the new bookies’ favourites, who were breathtaking on attack in their 4-2 win over Germany, with Richarlison starring with a hat-trick.

A superb goal from Franck Kessié handed Ivory Coast a 2-1 win over Saudi Arabia in what was altogether an impressive day for Africa.

Antony's assist for Richarlison's first goal ?pic.twitter.com/Pd6Mp2s2gL

— GOAL (@goal) July 22, 2021

In softball, there were wins for Australia, Japan and the USA over Italy, Mexico and Canada respectively.