AFC U20 Asian Cup:
Iran coach Abdi ‘proud’ despite last-eight exit
Iran head coach Hossein Abdi praised his team’s performance despite a shootout defeat against Japan at the AFC U20 Asian Cup quarterfinals in Shenzhen, China.
The two sides played to a 1-1 draw on Sunday but the Blue Samurai came out on top 4-3 in penalties to go through and book a place in September’s U20 World Cup in Chile.
Reza Ghandipour gave Iran a fifth-minute lead, only to see his strike canceled out by Kosei Ogura on the half-hour mark.
Iran missed the first two spot-kicks, with Erfan Darivsh-Aali hitting the crossbar, before Pouria Shahrabadi’s effort went wide.
Goalkeeper Arsha Shakouri converted Iran’s third attempt and then denied Niko Takahashi, but his heroics did little to turn the tide for Abdi’s boys as the four-time champion’s bid for a first title since 1976 came to an end.
“The players tried their best, and I believe we could have won this game too. Congratulations to Japan for advancing, but I’m also proud of my team,” said Abdi.
Iran enjoyed an emphatic campaign in the group stage, making a clean sweep of three victories, including a 2-1 win against defending champion Uzbekistan.
“These players have a bright future ahead of them. I’ve worked with them for three years, and I have no doubt they can compete with anyone. This mentality will take them far, and they will continue to improve,” added the Iranian, who led this group of players to the last-16 round at the U18 World Cup in Indonesia two years ago.
Meanwhile, Abdi’s opposite number, Yuzo Funakoshi, hailed his players’ fighting spirit and composure after finding themselves behind early on.
“It was a tough game, as we knew Iran would be difficult opponents but we stayed focused and didn’t panic after conceding early,” said Funakoshi.
“We didn’t try to change anything in terms of our approach. I trusted my players and even waited for the final whistle because I knew they would get the job done in the shootout. So many fans came to cheer for our team. We made our fans smile and we are very happy about that.”
Japan will take on Australia on Wednesday for a place in the final showpiece.
Elsewhere on Sunday, South Korea gave away a two-goal lead in stoppage time in a six-goal thriller against Uzbekistan, but managed to come out victorious in the shootout to set a last-four date with Saudi Arabia.