Japan secured a spot in the quarter-finals of the Asian Cup by comfortably defeating Bahrain 3-1 in Qatar. Ritsu Doan, Takefusa Kubo, and Ayase Ueda all scored goals for Japan.
Juan Antonio Pizzi, the coach of Bahrain, was hoping to resolve past disappointments as his Saudi Arabia team was defeated by Japan in the same round in 2019. However, Hajime Moriyasu’s team dominated the game and faced little challenge. Japan, who have won the championship four times, will now await the winner of the last-16 match between Iran and Syria.
According to Moriyasu, all the Asian teams participating in the Asian Cup have shown improvement and the overall level of football has also increased. He credits our team’s growth to the hard work of our players. However, he believes that our performance today was not perfect and there is still room for improvement.
In the 31st minute, Japan gained the advantage when Seiya Maikuma delivered a powerful shot that hit the post. However, midfielder Doan was quick to react and scored from a short distance off the rebound.
Japan went 2-0 up just after half-time through a stroke of good fortune when an unmarked Kubo received the ball inside the box, turned and fired home, with the goal awarded after a VAR check for an offside call.
During a corner kick, Bahrain reduced their deficit when Japan’s goalkeeper, Zion Suzuki, saved Sayed Baqer’s header. However, as Suzuki tried to catch the ball in mid-air, Ueda’s attempt to clear it resulted in a collision and the ball crossed the goal line.
The Japanese team was unable to maintain a shutout during the tournament. Captain Wataru Endo acknowledged that each opponent will study our team and exploit our vulnerabilities. He emphasized the need to rectify this and maintain focus for the entire 90 minutes.
Ueda redeemed himself for the previous own goal by scoring the third goal. He skillfully dodged three defenders who were attempting to stop him by grabbing his shirt, and then took a shot from a difficult angle to defeat the goalkeeper, Ebrahim Lutfalla.
Kaoru Mitoma made a comeback after recovering from an injury and created excitement at the Al Thumama Stadium with his agility and quickness on the field. He effortlessly maneuvered past defenders, leaving them in awe.
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However, Japan failed to take advantage and Lutfalla remained strong to prevent them from scoring a fourth goal. “It was a challenging game,” stated Pizzi. “They were superior to us in terms of technique and physicality. They have players with impressive individual abilities.”
Source: theguardian.com
