AFC U-19 Championship Bahrain 2016 Quarterfinal vs U-19 Tajikistan National Team
2016-10-24 (Mon.) - 16:15  Playing Time: 90min. (45min.×2)
Bahrain National Stadium (Manama/Bahrain)

U-19 Japan National Team　4-0（2-0, 2-0）U-19 Tajikistan National Team

Scores
8'　OGAWA Koki（U-19 Japan National Team）
19'　DOAN Ritsu（U-19 Japan National Team）
73'　OGAWA Koki（U-19 Japan National Team）
88'　IWASAKI Yuto（U-19 Japan National Team）

Starting Line-ups
GK：KOJIMA Ryosuke
DF：FUJITANI So, TOMIYASU Takehiro, NAKAYAMA Yuta, FUNAKI Kakeru
MF：DOAN Ritsu, ICHIMARU Mizuki, SAKAI Daisuke, MIYOSHI Koji
FW：OGAWA Koki, IWASAKI Yuto

Substitutions
GK：HIROSUE Riku, WAKAHARA Tomoya
DF：HATSUSE Ryo, ITAKURA Kou, MACHIDA Koki, IWATA Tomoki 
MF：ENDO Keita, NAGANUMA Yoichi, HARA Teruki
FW：NAKAMURA Shunta, KISHIMOTO Takeru

76'　FUNAKI Kakeru → HATSUSE Ryo
78'　OGAWA Koki→ NAKAMURA Shunta
84'　MIYOSHI Koji → NAGANUMA Yoichi

Match Report

The quarterfinal match of the AFC U-19 Championship Bahrain 2016, whereby the winner will book a place in the FIFA U-20 World Cup, saw the meeting of the group C winner, the Japan national team with 2 wins and 1 loss, and the runner-up of group D, the Republic of Tajikistan. The starting members for the Japanese squad were exactly the same as the third group stage match against the U-19 Qatar National Team.

From the beginning of the match, the Tajikistan defended solidly, while Japan controlled the match by having possession of the ball and connecting passes. In the 8th minute, midfielder ICHIMARU Mizuki (Gamba Osaka) fed a long pass to forward OGAWA Koki (Jubilo Iwata), who ran behind the opponents’ backline and headed towards the goal, but his shot was denied by the goalpost and cleared away by the Tajik defender. However, midfielder DOAN Ritsu (Gamba Osaka) found the loose ball on the right side and send a cross towards Ogawa, who this time found the net with his header. The Japanese side struck an opener and took the early lead.

Japan kept attacking the opponents’ goal even after their first goal. In the 19th minute, midfielder MIYOSHI Koji (Kawasaki Frontale), who surged up the left side, sent in a cross ball towards Doan, who superbly curled the shot beyond the reach of the Tajik goalkeeper with his left foot and posted the second goal for the Japanese side. The remainder of the first half stayed scoreless, and the game entered the break 2-0 in favour of the East Asian squad.

The momentum did not change in the second half, and Japan attacked aggressively looking to add insurance to their current scoreline. In the 73rd minute, the opponents conceded a free kick in the centre right outside of the penalty box, where Ogawa struck brilliantly the placed kick over the wall of defenders to score his second of the match. Now, the Japanese team led convincing with a score of 3-0.

Having a three-goal advantage over the Tajiks, Japan controlled the remainder of the game by focusing on having possession of the ball and defending solidly. In the closing minutes of the match, forward IWASAKI Yuto (Kyoto Tachibana High School) scored the fourth and the last goal for the Japanese squad. Moments later, the final while was blown and the U-19 Japan National Team posted a sweeping victory 4-0 over the Republic of Tajikistan squad and booked a place in the FIFA U-20 World Cup Korea Republic 2017 for the first time in five U-19 AFC appearances.

The next match will see the semifinal against the U-19 Vietnam National Team on Thursday 27 October.

Coach's and Players' Comments

UCHIYAMA Atsushi, Coach
I am simply glad that we booked the place in the U-20 World Cup after missing it for the four consecutive AFC appearances. Under pressure, the players played extremely well and I am satisfied with their performance today. I was the assistant coach in the previous U-19 AFC Championship and the squad missed the chance to play in the U-20 World Cup. I was disappointed with the result, but at the same time I learned a lot from that experience. I realised that the conditioning of the players was very important, and this time I focused on getting the team members in-form to play for each match. I also believe that persistent efforts led to this performance and I am very happy that we attained the desired result.

MF #10 SAKAI Daisuke (Oita Trinita)
I am over the moon that we booked the place in the U-20 World Cup. I experienced the previous U-19 AFC Championship and the squad lost in the quarterfinals. This time, we were able to avenge for the loss. We missed the opportunity to play in the previous four U-20 World Cups, and I am glad that we turned things around and qualified for the world competition. Now, we will be focusing on winning the AFC Championship and work together as a untied team to achieve that goal.

DF #3 NAKAYAMA Yuta (Kashiwa Reysol)
I am very happy that we won the match with a 4-0 sweeping victory and booked the place in the U-20 World Cup. We worked hard every day to attain this result. In addition, we kept a clean sheet for the four consecutive games. This is definitely a positive. I hope we can continue winning and aim for the championship title by keeping the opponents scoreless. 

FW #9 OGAWA Koki (Jubilo Iwata)
I had more-than-usual game-time jitters, but I am now relieved and delighted that we booked the place in the U-20 World Cup. After scoring in the Yemen match, I could not score a goal in the past two matches, even though I was a starting member in both games. Therefore, I am glad I scored two goals today and contributed to the victory of the team. I would like to win the following semifinal and then the final and claim the title for the AFC championship.

Schedule

*Local Time
*The schedule is subject to change due to the team condition, the weather, etc.
*The Championship's top four ranked teams will then fly the Asian flag at the FIFA U-20 World Cup Korea Republic 2017. If Korea Republic, the hosting country of 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup, advances to the semifinals, the playoff matches will be held deciding the fifth place among the four losing teams in the quarterfinals.

AFC U-19 Championship Bahrain 2016

2016-10-13(Thu.)～2016-10-30(Sun.)
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