U-23 Asian Cup review #2: Japan advance to knockout stage after defeating UAE, but repeated missed chances could hurt them in the future

Three days after their victory over China, Japan faced the UAE in Matchday 2 of the U-23 Asian Cup. This was an important game, with a win sure to book Japan a place in the knockout stage, and coach Go Oiwa decided to replace seven players in the starting line-up from the China match.

That decision was justified because of the tight schedule, but a drastic change in the squad also carries with it the risk of disrupting the team’s rhythm. However, as Oiwa said, “I sent them out with confidence” and Japan’s strength was not diminished.

Japan pushed from the very start of the game. Both full-backs positioned themselves high up the field and both wingers were also bold in their play. Central midfielders Ryotaro Araki and Sota Kawasaki took it in turns to advance into the attacking third, while lone striker Shota Fujio was a key player up front with his strong and skilful hold-up play.

Japan’s attack, which moved up the pitch under pressure and took shot after shot, showed that there was a gap in quality between Japan and the UAE that was hard to bridge.

One of the highlights of Japan’s attacking play was their set-pieces, with their first goal in the 27th minute coming from a corner kick. Fuki Yamada’s corner from the left made its way to Rihito Yamamoto on the opposite flank, and he supplied a sharp cross into the area for centre-back Seiji Kimura to head home from close-range.

As well as this first goal, Kein Sato and Kimura also managed to get attempts on target from free-kicks by Araki in the 34th minute and Yamada in the 38th minute.

Although neither of these found the net, the presence of highly-accurate set-piece takers is a major weapon for Japan as they aim for the Paris Olympics.

Japan needed one more goal to increase their chances of finishing top of the table

In the second half, UAE seemed to run out of steam, which only served to further spur Japan’s offensive play. Sato struck a powerful effort from a cut-in at the start of the second half, but it just missed the target. Then, in the 60th minute, Ayumu Ohata’s cross from the left went straight into the net, but VAR intervened and ruled it out for an offside.

Nevertheless, in the 66th minute Araki, Sato and Ohata smoothly linked up on the left flank, and Kawasaki headed home Ohata’s cross to double Japan’s lead.

Mao Hosoya and Kuryu Matsuki, who both came on during the second half, then each had decisive chances, before Sato also missed a glorious opportunity in added time.

With none of these chances being converted into further goals, the game finished 2-0.

Following their victory over China, Japan extended their haul to six points and already know that they would advance to the knockout stage with one game to spare. However, regrettably, they were unable to score what could have been an important third goal against UAE.

South Korea, who Japan will face on Matchday 3, also have six points and are level with Japan in terms of both goals scored and conceded. If the game between the two sides finishes as a draw, a penalty shoot-out will be required to determine who takes the top spot in the group. If Japan had scored a third goal against UAE, however, they would have gone through in first place even with a draw against South Korea.

Japan, who are in Group B, are set to face a team from Group A in the quarter-finals. In Group A, Qatar will probably come out on top and will play the second-placed team from Group B, and ideally, Japan will want to avoid playing the host nation at this stage of the competition. Of course, a win over South Korea will also be enough, but the only regret from the UAE match was that Japan reduced their chances of going through as group winners on account of their repeated missed opportunities.