After falling 2-1 to Saudi Arabia on Matchday One, Japan recovered splendidly with a 6-0 win over Korea Republic, and entered their final group tie against Vietnam knowing that they needed nothing less than three points to reach the last eight, and Shimizu duly delivered. 

“I’m really happy to score two goals,” said a satisfied Shimizu. “I understood our situation, and I was able to help the team. My teammates also worked really hard, and I want to continue scoring goals. 

“I am 100 percent confident that we can reach the final again, so I will continue working hard for the team.”

Japan head coach Kenichiro Kogure praised the forward and the rest of his players for their determination to bounce back from their opening day defeat. 

“He (Shimizu) is a good pivot, and his goals were necessary for the team,” said Kogure. “Everyone trusts him and he is important in our attacks. 

“We are really satisfied with the result because we reached the quarter-finals as first in the group."

“It’s true that the Saudi Arabia match shocked the players and staff. Our objective is to be champions of Asia, and it was necessary for us to win every match to reach that objective. So we had to recover mentally and physically. But we have confidence in our own futsal (playstyle).”

Japan will face Group C runners-up Indonesia in the quarter-finals on Tuesday.

The defeat for Vietnam, meanwhile, was a setback after winning against Korea Republic and Saudi Arabia, as they finished group runners-up which means a quarter-final against defending champions Islamic Republic of Iran. 

Head coach Diego Giustozzi admitted his side fell victim to Japan’s pressure, but firmly believes his side can give Iran a real challenge. 

“I think we need to take more initiative,” said Giustozzi. “When the pressure is high, our performance comes down. We need more time to work on this mentality problem. If we want to win, we need to take more initiative.

“We’re second (in the group), and we have to think about the next match. Now we go into the next round, where the match after that is not assured. But I’m confident in my own team. We have to believe in ourselves.”