Jiangyin Zhouzhuang Cup CFA International Youth Football Tournament 2016　3rd Match vs U-17 Iran National Team
2016-5-14 (Sat.) - 19:30   Playing Time: 90min. (45min.×2)
Jiang yin Sports centre stadium (China/Jiangsu)

U-16 Japan National Team　4-1 (2-1, 2-0)　U-17 Iran National Team

Scores
13'　Goal against (PSO) (U-17 Iran National Team)
16'　NAKAMURA Keito (U-16 Japan National Team)
27'　SUZUKI Toichi (PSO) (U-16 Japan National Team)
50'　FUKUOKA Shimpei (U-16 Japan National Team)
63'　MIYASHIRO Taisei (U-16 Japan National Team)

Line-ups
GK: AOKI Kokoro
DF: HIGASHI Shunki, KEMMOTSU Takumu, KOBAYASHI Yuki, KIDA Hinata
MF: KATSURA Rikuto, FUKUOKA Shimpei, HIRAKAWA Rei, SUZUKI Toichi
FW: YAMADA Hiroto, NAKAMURA Keito

Substitutes
GK: KOKUBO Leobrian
DF: SUGAWARA Yukinari, TAKAHATA Keita, YAMASAKI Taichi, KUWAHARA Kaito
MF: SEHATA Gijo, KOZUKI Soichiro
FW: MIYASHIRO Taisei

14'　KEMMOTSU Takumu → SUGAWARA Yukinari
HT　HIGASHI Shunki → KUWAHARA Kaito
HT　SUZUKI Toichi → SEHATA Gijo
57'　YAMADA Hiroto → MIYASHIRO Taisei
69'　KOBAYASHI Yuki → YAMASAKI Taichi
78'　KIDA Hinata → KOZUKI Soichiro

Match Report

“00 Japan” played against the U-17 Iran National Team in the third and final match of the group league of “Jiangyin Zhouzhuang Cup CFA International Youth Football Tournament 2016” on 14 May, and beat them 4-1. As a result, Japan got the title of the tournament for the first time.

Japan played against Iran for the third time; they have faced them twice before in the “Central Asia - Japan U-16 Football Exchange Programme”. Last year, Japan was beaten by Iran and the recent one held in March this year was scoreless draw. For Japan, this was the match they really wanted to win by beating one of their rival countries in Asia.

It was also important for Iran – they could have got the title if they could beat Japan. They built-up a solid block in their half; they initially dealt well with Japan’s attack and stole the ball, and at the same time, their speedy forward players started running to the front line. On the other hand, one of the Japanese players got injured at the beginning and they had to play with 10 players for a while.

In the 13th minute, Japan gave a small but certain chance to Iran; an Iranian player got a spot behind a Japanese defender and although Japan could get the ball back, the defender gave away a penalty. Japan conceded the opening goal by Iran’s strong penalty shot.

Japan switched their mind to be positive again and started attacking Iran. In the 16th minute, midfielder FUKUOKA Shimpei made a long pass to forward YAMADA Hiroto, he then crossed it to forward NAKAMURA Keito who was on the left. He jumped with all his strength into the near side and got the cross with his right foot, and his shot successfully found Iran’s net.

In the 27th minute, midfielder SUZUKI Toichi trapped an Iranian player in their penalty area and got a penalty; he calmly smashed the ball into their goal to turn the game around. The 1st half ended 2-1.

In the 2nd half, Japan’s defenders calmly responded to Iran’s attacks using long passes, and waited for any chance to counterattack. In the 50th minute, midfielder Fukuoka took Japan’s corner kick and found the net directly because the goalkeeper misread the flight of the ball due to the wind.

In the 53rd minute, Nakamura persistently dribbled up the right wing and crossed it to forward MIYASHIRO Taisei, he then scored the 4th goal calmly. After the goal, Japan had to go through a challenging time but didn’t concede any more goals due to Iran’s mistakes. The match ended 4-1. Japan got 3 consecutive wins and as a result, they got the memorial title of this new competition.

Japan showed its strength through battling against U-17 opponents; they continued to play without any fears. “00Japan”keeps a higher level of standard and purpose to become the team which never loses. Their next activity as a team is the trip to Gore, India at the end of May. The AFC U-16 Championship India 2016 will be held in Gore.

* "00 JAPAN" is the nickname of the U-16 Japan National Team that consists of members who were born after 2000.

Players' Comments

GK #1  AOKI Kokoro (JFA Academy Fukushima U18)
It was good that we could win the match which decided our victory of this competition. However, we gave away many fouls in our half and gave them a lot of set play chances. We also have to improve how to stay consistent in the 2nd half until the end of the match.

We should have communicated more at some moments to see if we would move the ball around or if we attack a spot behind defenders. This is one thing we have to review well. We are going back to our teams, in my daily training I want to improve my quality of kicks, coaching, and making better decisions when we were attacked in the spot behind our defenders.

MF #10  FUKUOKA Shimpei (Kyoto Sanga F.C. U-18)
We conceded the opening goal, but we kept playing with calm mentality and turned the game around in the 1st half, I think this is our strength and advantage as a team. The result that we could get the additional goals in the 2nd half gave us a sense of confidence, but how we managed the game towards the end is the issue to improve for us.

Personally, I tried to make long shots but none of them found the net successfully. I want to improve my shot accuracy as much as possible through quality of daily training. Making good passes and having a wider vision to see the whole of the pitch are the issues for me, so I will keep them in my mind and work hard in my daily training.

We have limited time to the AFC U-16 Championship India 2016, so each of us will keep high motivation to improve the quality of the team.

FW #9  YAMADA Hiroto (Cerezo Osaka U-18)
I’m very happy that we could get the title after working hard as a team. However, how we started the game in the 1st half was not good and we were also pressured a lot by Iran towards the end of the match. They are the issues to be sorted as a team.

As a player it was good that I am more able to receive the ball by jumping into the space behind defenders which allowed me to make more chances. The big issue for me is the lack of ideas to carry on attacking; I stopped the ball because of this. Before the next trip, I want to keep working hard to improve the quality of my play.

Schedule

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