On Tuesday 31 August, the 5-a-side football (Blind Football Men's) Japan National Team played their third fixture of the preliminary round of the Tokyo 2020 Summer Paralympic Games 5-a-side football against China PR at Aomi Urban Sports Park.

The two teams entered the match tied in points, but Japan held the advantage in goal difference, putting them in position to clinch the semi-finals with a draw or better.

Needing a win to advance through, China PR showcased great aggression from the early minutes, taking multiple shots that threatened the Japanese goal.

Despite the collective efforts displayed by the Japanese players, China PR scored the opening goal in the 12th minute, when ZHU Ruiming dribbled through the field and struck a low driven shot that found the corner of the goal.

With momentum on their side, Zhu scored another goal in the 18th minute, this time with a striking a powerful shot that pierced the upper corner of the goal to double the Chinese lead.

In efforts to rally back, Japan started to apply more numbers upfront, creating more chances in their attacking third. Japan’s biggest opportunity came in the 33rd minute, when KURODA Tomonari intercepted the ball and dribbled up the line to take a right footed shot, but his attempt went just wide of the target. Despite the tenacious efforts showcased by the Japanese side, the second half ended scoreless, as China PR advanced through to the semi-finals with a 2-0 victory.

As a result, Japan finished third in their group and will be facing Spain in the 5th/6th place play-off on Thursday 2 September.

Coach and Players’ Comments

TAKADA Satoshi, Coach
We had been working hard to reach the semi-finals, so we are devastated. We had prepared ourselves to defend against Zhu, but both goals came when the second player was not able to apply pressure. The fact that our opponent was able to capitalise on those chances is a proof that they are the better team, so we need to accept this loss and congratulate our opponent for their victory.

GK #1 SATO Daisuke (Tama Hassas)
We conceded two goals from plays where we gave too much space to our opponent. It wasn’t like someone was not doing their job or caught off guard, but it is still regretful. The Chinese players were better in terms of technique, speed, and mentality. We need to work harder and gain more experience to win against opponents like China PR.

FP #7 TANAKA Akihito (Tama Hassas)
Both of the goals we conceded came from a play in which I needed to press up higher to limit the angle of the shot. China PR kept moving the ball a lot more than we expected, and I presume that I was an entertaining match for the viewers. We hope to improve ourselves so that we can have our pay back against China PR in the future.

FP #10 KAWAMURA Ryo (Papelecial Shinagawa)
This is a disappointing result, but through the three matches played at this Paralympics, I feel like we were able to showcase what we have been working on and our determination to compete as a member of the Japan National Team. Despite conceding the second goal, we never gave up and fought until the end. We will not be able to advance to the semi-finals, but we will try to win the 5th place play-off to finish the tournament on a high note.

FP #11 KURODA Tomonari (Tama Hassas)
China PR was able to capitalise on their opportunities, while Japan was not able to do so, and that was the big difference in this match. China PR has continued to improve themselves and they are a completely different team since I first played against them. This was a disappointing result, but I feel fortunate to be able to compete against our biggest rival in Asia at this world stage.