Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Riffa: Coach Atsushi Uchiyama praised his players and admitted they had their share of good fortune as Japan claimed the 2016 AFC U-19 Championship with a 5-3 penalty shootout win over Saudi Arabia at the Bahrain National Stadium on Sunday.
Koki Ogawa scored the winning penalty in the fifth round of spot kicks to give Japan the continental crown after Abdullah Magrshi had put his effort over Ryosuke Kojima’s bar following 120 minutes of scoreless play.
The title is Japan’s first in the competition and comes after six previous appearances in the final had ended in defeat.
“Even before the match I knew it would be difficult and it was a really tough game,” said Uchiyama. “It could have gone either way, but we had a little bit more luck and that’s how it is. The players did well after playing six games and I’m very proud of my players and really happy that we won.”
Japan went through the entire competition without conceding a goal, but Uchiyama was quick to stress that his team’s success did not just lie with their defensive discipline and organisation.
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