Paris Olympics: Henry praises players after France beat Egypt to reach football final

Coach Thierry Henry praised his players' resilience after France reached the Olympic men's football final for the first time in 40 years with a 3-1 win over Egypt in extra time at the Lyon stadium on Monday.

France fought back after conceding their first goal in the tournament when Mahmoud Saber grabbed a stunning lead for Egypt before Jean-Philippe Mateta levelled with a late strike.

Mateta got a double before Michael Olise scored in extra time to earn Henry's side the victory and extend their quest for a second Olympic title in Friday's final at Parc des Princes against Spain, who earlier beat Morocco 2-1.

"What a night! All credit to the players. Egypt were really good today but we never stopped going after the win and the fans pushed us forward," coach Henry said.

"We have secured a medal now but we have one more step to go to win our first football gold medal after 40 years. Now Spain await us in the final and it's going to be a big game."

Egypt, who were playing their third Olympic semifinal, had more shots on goal during the first half before Saber opened the scoring in the 62nd minute, capitalising on a rebound to power in a second attempt.

France, who hit the woodwork three times throughout the match, equalised when Mateta finally found the net seven minutes from time from an Olise pass through Egypt's backline.

Egypt went down to 10 men early in extra time when Omar Fayed got a second yellow card for a foul on Desire Doue and they were dealt a further blow when Mateta scored again to put France ahead with a towering header in the 99th minute.

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