Defending champions Qatar were knocked out of the competition after Japan confirmed their progression to the AFC U-19 Championship Bahrain 2016 knockout stages with a 3-0 win.
Japan advanced as Group C leaders, and Iran’s 1-0 win over Yemen helped them to leapfrog Qatar in the standings.
Yuto Iwasaki opened the scoring for Japan in the 14th minute at the Bahrain National Stadium before they had a goal disallowed just before the half hour mark.
Koji Miyoshi doubled the advantage with a savage strike to end the half, with defender Takehiro Tomiyasu scoring a collector’s item in the 62nd minute.
“Since the very first minute, Japan were better than us. We were defending in good order but we made a communication error and they scored a goal. Japan were much better than us so congratulations to them and good luck,” said Qatar coach Oscar Moreno.
“We lost the game but we stood on our feet. It wasn’t easy for our players but we cannot blame them. When one team is better than the other in all areas, the only thing we can do is to fight and try to reduce the gap between the two sides. Japan were better technically and physically tonight.”
Japan looked the more adventurous of the two sides as the game kicked off but spurned a good chance as Iwasaki slipped at a crucial time in the opposition box.
The Kyoto Tachibana High School striker did well to recover his footing but the Qatari defence had got back by this time and blocked his shot on goal.
Iwasaki did not have to wait long to make amends though as Hassan al-Ali’s attempted backpass two minutes after was horribly casual and mishit with Koki Ogawa bearing down on him.
Goalkeeper Mohamed al-Bakari got a hand to the ball ahead of the Japanese striker but could only watch on helplessly as Iwasaki joyfully slot into an empty net, prompting a round of high-fives from a delighted Atsushi Uchiyama on the bench.
The Qatar defence was rocked and almost conceded a second goal in quick succession as Funaki Kakeru pumped the ball into the box to an unmarked Ogawa but his header skimmed the top of the crossbar and out for a goal kick.
Japan were still creating chances though and thought they had made it 2-0 when an unmarked Yuta Nakayama planted a header past a rooted al-Bakari off Mizuki Ichimaru’s free kick in the 29th minute.
Although both teams had resumed their positions in preparation for the kick-off, referee Turki al-Khudhayr called play back and chalked off the goal due to an offside infringement by Ritsu Doan.
The temporary setback did not seem to ruffle the rampant Japanese attackers, as they notched that crucial second goal at the stroke of halftime, with Miyoshi pouncing on a Qatari half-clearance and unleashing a rocket-fueled left-footed strike into the Qatari net.
Qatar came out of the break looking refreshed, as they started to attack the Japanese defence with more purpose.
However, it was Japan who found the net again in the 62nd minute as Ogawa struck the woodwork once again with his header before Tomiyasu turned home the rebound.
Abdulrasheed Umaru then showed a decent turn of speed to chase down a ball pumped into the Japanese half, but a night of frustration continued for Qatar as Kojima tipped his fierce shot over the crossbar.
Japan coach Atsushi Uchiyama was palpably happy with the result. “We went into the game knowing that only a win would do. I told the players to be aggressive before the game, even the defenders needed to play with aggression. Although we had a lot of pressure on us to score, the players overcame it,” Uchiyama said.
“I wasn’t expecting the match to be too easy but I looked at my players’ faces before the match and they knew they had to win so I was feeling okay. We analysed our opponents in the first 15 minutes and knew what to do; it wasn’t too difficult but we played well.”