◆Date: Thu. 10 November [14:30 (local time)]
◆Venue: Gayal Beach (Neom, Saudi Arabia)

Japan Beach Soccer National Team 6 (2-1, 2-1, 2-0) 2 Bahrain Beach Soccer National Team

【Goals】
<1p>
1' MOREIRA Ozu
2' MOREIRA Ozu
11' Goal against
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2' Goal against
3' OBA Takaaki
12' AKAGUMA Takuya
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5' MOREIRA Ozu
7' OBA Takaaki

Starting Line-up
GK SHIBAMOTO Shinya
FP MOREIRA Ozu, MATSUO Naoya, OBA Takaaki, OKUYAMA Masanori

Reserve
GK KAWAI Yusuke
FP YAMAUCHI Shusei, AKAGUMA Takuya, UESATO Takumi, KIBUNE Yuki, SAITO Gaiya, TANAKA Hayate

Match Report

On Thursday 10 November, the Japan Beach Soccer National Team faced the Bahrain Beach Soccer National Team in their second match of the Neom Beach Soccer Cup held in Saudi Arabia.

The match started with Japan applying plenty of pressure to take the initiative. In the first minute, the shot taken by MATSUO Naoya (Averdade Kumamoto BS) struck the hand of an opponent, allowing MOREIRA Ozu (Tokyo Verdy BS) to convert the spot kick to put Japan ahead. Moreira went onto score another goal in the second minute to doble the Japanese lead. Despite controlling the game, Japan conceded a goal in the 11th minute, when the opposing pivot redirected a shot taken by the goalkeeper to cut down the deficit before the break.

Japan continued to control the ball possession in the second period, but conceded a penalty kick in the second minute, when their goalkeeper SHIBAMOTO Shinya (Averdade Kumamoto BS), who was stepping out of the goalmouth to join the offence, committed a foul after getting his pass intercepted. Shibamoto was shown a red card for this play, and although KAWAI Yusuke (Tokyo Verdy BS) entered to the pitch to face the free kick, Bahrain converted the free kick to level the match.
*In beach soccer, if a player is sent off after receiving a red or second yellow card, the receiving team must play a man down for two minutes, or until conceding a goal.

Despite conceding the equaliser, Japan retook the lead in the very next play, when OBA Takaaki (Loewe Yokohama) scored with a bicycle kick. In the 12th minute, AKAGUMA Takuya (Lazo Apego Kitakyusyu) scored Japan’s fourth goal, when UESATO Takumi (Tokyo Verdy BS) delivered a pass to setup the bicycle kick of the veteran pivot.

With momentum on their side, Japan dominated the third period. In the fifth minute, Moreira converted a free kick he earned himself to complete a hat-trick. Bahrain tried to rally back by applying aggressive pressure from the frontline, but the Japanese players showed great composure to keep their AFC rivals at bay. In the seventh minute, Moreira and Oba responded to a quick feed from their goalkeeper to score on a fast break to cap off the action, as Japan walked away with a 6-2 victory.

Japan will now face beach soccer powerhouse, Brazil, on Friday 11 November.

Players’ Comments

FP #5 UESATO Takumi (Tokyo Verdy BS)
Ahead of today’s match against Bahrain, we spoke as a team that we need to prioritise results over performance, win at all costs, and fight with the pride and determination of the national team. The back-to-back goals scored by Ozu-san at the beginning of the match really helped us. Although there were stints where we struggled to find our rhythm, everyone played with a sense of commitment to win the match with a total team effort. Naturally, we tend to get good results when everyone is working in the same direction as a team. I personally feel the need to improve my speed, decisions, and techniques in order to help my teammates play better and deliver more plays that leads to goals. I made a mistake that cost the team the game in our first match against Oman, and I am sure I let a lot of people down. I will do my best to get myself involved in the team’s goals in our next match against Brazil, so please continue to support us.

FP #15 SAITO Gaiya (Sol Mar Praia Okinawa)
Following our loss to Oman, we made conscious efforts to improve the team’s atmosphere both on and off the pitch, which helped us enter today’s match with a positive vibe. When looking at the result alone, we were able to gain points to keep ourselves in contention for the tournament, but I feel like we still have plenty of room for improvements. We are expecting a tough match against Brazil tomorrow, so we will work hard as a team to strive for victory.

Neom Beach Soccer Cup

Tournament period: Wed. 9 - Sat. 12 November 2022

Tournament Information