Daniel Passarella

Soccer

Nigeria is determined to win a gold medal in soccer for the glory of its country, its continent and its race.

Argentina coach Daniel Passarella has reasons that are much more personal.

A sellout crowd is expected at Sanford Stadium in Birmingham, Ala., when the teams culminate the 15-day tournament with the gold-medal match today. Much of the match is to be televised live by NBC.

Passarella, 43, who is nearing the end of his second year as Argentine national coach, has dedicated what would be his country’s first soccer gold medal to the memory of his 18-year-old son, Sebastian, who died in a car accident late last year.

A star player with the River Plate club and the Argentine national team, Passarella rose to prominence when he became head coach at River Plate at the age of 37 in 1990. He took over the national team after Argentina was eliminated in the quarterfinals of the 1994 World Cup.

Passarella seems to rarely smile nowadays, but that determination and focus may soften a bit if his team can fulfill its destiny today. And while Nigeria is an explosive team that is coming off a 4-3 semifinal upset of Brazil, Argentina must be rated the favorite based on its defense alone.

The match that may have solidified this team occurred on March 5, when Argentina played Brazil for the No. 1 South American seed in the tournament. Argentina jumped ahead 2-0, but Brazil rallied to tie and gain the top seed on the basis of overall goal differential.

To fine-tune the team, Passarella named Roberto Sensini, Jose Antonio Chamot and Javier Zanetti, three defenders with experience in the top European leagues, as his over-age players.

Nigeria has never won a medal in Olympic soccer, while Argentina’s only medal was a silver in 1928.