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Henry unhappy with full-time scenes in France's Olympic quarter-final
Written by Sports Desk. Posted in Olympics. | 03 August 2024 | 199 Views
Tags: Argentina, Enzo Millot, France, Javier Mascherano, Marco Di Cesare, Olympics, Thierry Henry

Thierry Henry admitted he did not agree with the scenes that followed France's 1-0 win over Argentina in the quarter-finals at the Paris Olympics. 

Jean-Philippe Mateta's fifth minute strike proved to be the difference in Bordeaux, but ugly scenes at Ilgiz Tantashev's full-time whistle overshadowed Les Bleus' triumph. 

Tensions between the two nations had been at boiling point after Argentina's Copa America winning squad were filmed singing a racist chant aimed towards the French. 

Argentina's Marco Di Cesare set the tone in a feisty encounter early on, picking up the first of 10 yellow cards shown in the match. 

After the Olympic hosts had confirmed their place in the semi-finals, celebrations spilled onto the pitch, which sparked a reaction from the Albiceleste players.

Enzo Millot, who had been substituted five minutes before full-time, received a red card for his actions, much to the frustration of his head coach. 

"I don’t agree with what happened at the end of the match. My player [Millot] got a red card and I don’t accept it, it shouldn’t happen," Henry said. 

"I couldn’t control what happened. I went to greet the coach and when I turned around, what happened, happened.

"We won, but I didn’t like what happened at the end with my player.

"We don't take this match as revenge because the World Cup was with other teams, Henry continued. "Having scored the goal quickly gave us a decision.

France will face Egypt in the last four of the competition, with the opportunity to win gold for the first time since Los Angeles 1984.