The 5th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games
Group Stage 1st Match vs Lebanon Futsal National Team
18 September 2017 (Mon.) Kick-off 13:15(Local Time) Playing Time 40min.(20min.×2）
Multifunctional Sport Venue Hall-1 (Ashgabat, Turkmenistan)

Japan Futsal National Team 5-2 (1-1, 4-1) Lebanon Futsal National Team

Scores
18'　UEMATSU Koto（Japan Futsal National Team）
19'　goal against（Lebanon Futsal National Team）
21'　UEMURA Atsuya（Japan Futsal National Team）
22'　goal against（Lebanon Futsal National Team）
33'　YAGI Kiyoto（Japan Futsal National Team）
34'　SHIMIZU Kazuya（Japan Futsal National Team）
36'　HORIGOME Shota（Japan Futsal National Team）

Starting Line-ups
GK：YAZAWA Daimu
FP：SHIMIZU Kazuya, MUROTA Yuki, UEMATSU Koto, UEMURA Atsuya

Reserves
GK：MIURA Taku, UEHARA Takuya
FP：MORIMURA Takashi, TAMURA Kasho, HORIGOME Shota, HARA Shinsuke, YAGI Kiyoto, HASHIMOTO Masaya, SAITO Koichi

Match Report

Japan Futsal National Team, who are currently participating in the 5th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games Ashgabat 2017, faced Lebanon in their first group-stage match of the tournament on Monday 18.

It was a quite start to the game as both sides entered the tournament opener by carefully analysing their opponents’ strategy. Despite having a physical disadvantage over Lebanon, captain MUROTA Yuki led the Japanese squad in attacks, whereby most of the pass exchanges were done with only one or two touches, and orchestrated a series of chances to exploit the gap in the Lebanese defence.

Japan then took advantage of a chance just before halftime. Collecting the ball in the right side of the court, UEMATSU Koto nailed a right-footer into the net to open the scoring for his side. It was looking as if the Japanese team were taking a one-goal advantage at halftime, but Lebanon struck back a minute later to level the match.

During the break, Japanese coach Bruno GARCIA cautioned his team, ‘it would be a tough second half’, but he further added and encouraged his players by saying, ‘We aren’t behind, and are performing well in many areas as well. I expect their work-rate to come down in the second half. Have confidence and keep playing our style of football.’

Japan got off to an excellent start in the second half as UEMURA Atsuya scored a go-ahead goal in the 21st minute, but failed to take the initiative of the match by allowing Lebanon to find an equaliser moments later.

Thereafter,the game stayed in the balance for some period, but YAGI Kiyoto fired in a dazzling shot from range into the Lebanese net in the 33rd minute and gave his team the confidence needed to finish in style. Now with the momentum on their side, SHIMIZU Kazuya slotted in the fourth in the 34 minute and HORIGOME Shota put the icing on the cake with the fifth on 36 minutes. Just in the 4-minute span, Japan took the game beyond the reach of the Middle Eastern counterparts and grabbed a 5-2 win in their opening match.

Japan Futsal National Team will face Thailand in their second group-stage match on Thursday 21 from 11:00 Local Time (15:00 Japan Time).

Coach's and Players Comments

Bruno GARCIA, Coach (Japan Futsal National Team)
Our players’ performance today gave me a very positive impression. Today’s victory is not just about winning, but also built the confidence to compete in the subsequent matches. In regards to the tactics, we played in the way that we planned prior to entering the match. Lebanon are an excellent team with quality players, but we faced them today with composure. In our team, we have many new players who are experiencing international matches for their first time, but still managed to secure a win. This is crucial for us to move ahead in the competition. We will play against Thailand in the next match and they are also a potent team as well. We will make a good preparation for the coming match.

FP #5 HORIGOME Shota (SHRIKER OSAKA)
First of all, I am relieved to win this important first match. However, we haven’t accomplished anything yet. We will continue to work hard and correct our issues that we found today prior to the second match against Thailand.

FP #11 SHIMIZU Kazuya (FUGADOR SUMIDA)
We won the important first match against Lebanon. There were some difficult stretches, but we all coped well and secured a win. For the next match against Thailand, we will make the best possible preparations and go all out as a united team to grab our second win.

FP #14 UEMURA Atsuya (Shonan Bellmare)
It was a difficult match today, but we managed to win it at the end. However, we allowed our opponents to level the match twice. I believe this is one of the areas where we need to work on prior to the next match in two days against Thailand. We will try to secure the top place in the group and move on to the knockout phase.

Schedule

*The schedule may be subject to change due to the team condition, the weather, etc.