Ulaanbaatar: Japan booked their place in the AFC U-19 Championship 2018 with a 2-1 victory over Thailand in their final Group I at the Mongolian Football Federation Football Centre in Ulaanbaatar on Wednesday.
Tied on six points going into the match Japan only needed a draw as they had a superior goal difference to Thailand's.
Thailand needed to win but it was Japan who started the match brightly.
Two minutes into the match, Mizuki Ando’s shot rocked the post as Japan set the pace.
Thailand were reliant on counter-attacks and in the 14th minute, Nakin Wisetchat’s shot from close range was saved by Japanese goalkeeper Osako Keisuke.
Japan, on the other hand, continued to press but the opening goal eluded them in the first 45 minutes.
After the break, Japan started to play with more intensity.
Forward Kyosuke Tagawa opened the scoring with a close range shot in the 62nd minute.
Thailand, however, were not going to give up without a fight and three minutes later, Japan conceded their first goal of the qualifying tournament as Thailand substitute Chokanan Saima-In made it 1-1.
Tagawa, however, had the final say for Japan as he scored his second in the 66th minute to ensure his team advanced to the Finals in style.
Marc Alavedra Palacios: Thailand head coach
“Congratulations to Japan and my team. My team knew they were playing against one of the best teams in Asia. We made some mistakes in defence, especially when we conceded corners. But I still believe we are one of best 16 teams of Asia. We need to wait to see what happen in the other groups. I believe that we have a lot of options to qualify.”
Kageyama Masanaga: Japan head coach
“First of all I would like to thank the Mongolian FA. I guess it was very tough and very difficult to organise this tournament. Thank you very much. For today’s match, our players had very nice passion. I didn’t expect that our opponents would just focus on the defence. I understand they wanted to qualify for the final round. Today was extremely cold. It’s lucky we have four seasons in Japan.”
Mongolia fought back from 2-0 down to beat Singapore 4-2 in their final group stage match.
Both teams had already been eliminated after suffering defeats in their earlier matches and were playing for pride.
Mongolia started aggressively with Bilguun Damdindorj’s effort hitting the woodwork in the 14th minute.
Singapore, however, took the lead when they were awarded a penalty in the 22nd minute. Muhammad Danial Syafiq converted.
Three minutes later, Singapore doubled their advantage as Muhammad Saifullah Bin Mohammad’s long range shot found the net.
Mongolia gave themselves hope when Jansyerik Maratkhan scored from the penalty spot in the 40th minute.
After the break, Mongolia showed marked improvement and Maratkhan scored his second in the 53rd minute.
Singapore were reduced to 10 men in the 85th minute when Nur Adam received his second caution.
Three minutes from time, Maratkhan completed his hat-trick.
That was followed by another red card for Singapore as Gerald Joseph Ting Yen Hong incurred a second booking.
Mongolia were not done yet as in added time, substitute Ganbayar Ganbold scored their fourth to complete a stunning comeback.
Singapore, however, saw a third red card after the final whistle as Muhammad Saifullah Muhammad Akbar was penalised for an incident following the conclusion of the tie.
Christophe Chaintreuil: Singapore head coach
“I’m disappointed. We were okay as we were leading 2-0. But we gave a chance to our opponents to come back and win the game. Actually, we had good opportunities to make it 3-1. We didn’t score and lost control in the second half. I’m sorry for the last few minutes. It’s not the attitude we want to show on the pitch. We couldn’t control our emotion and were nervous at end of the game.”
Battulga Zorigt: Mongolia head coach
“It was a very difficult match. We trailed 1-2 in the first half. But we showed a very good performance in the second half. I want to thank all my players.”
Photos: AFC
Source: the-afc.com