Ivory Coast defeated Saudi Arabia 2-1 in its opening match in the men’s Olympic soccer competition on Thursday, thanks to Franck Kessie’s goal in the 66th minute.
Ivory Coast was making its first Olympic participation since the 2008 Beijing Games, when it got to the knockout round. Saudi Arabia has not competed in an Olympic soccer tournament since 1996.
Ivory Coast took a 1-0 lead late in the first half thanks to an own goal by defender Abdulelah Alamri, but Saudi Arabia came back with a goal in the 44th minute from Salem Aldawsari.
Kessie, who plays for AC Milan, scored off a pass from Manchester United forward Amad Diallo.
At the Olympics, the two teams are in a difficult group alongside Brazil, the gold medalists from 2016, and Germany, the silver medalists who fell to the Brazilians on penalties at the Maracana Stadium.
