AFC Women’s Futsal Asian Cup:
Japan defeat sums up below-par campaign for Iran
Two-time defending champion Iran suffered a first defeat in the history of the AFC Women’s Futsal Asian Cup on Thursday, falling to a last-four 3-2 loss to Japan in Hohhot, China.
The result meant there will be a first-time champion in today’s final between Japan and Thailand, which came from behind to beat China 3-2 in the other semifinal.
Meanwhile, there will be much more than a consolation third place on the line when Iran and the host square off earlier today, as the winner will secure the third and final spot at the inaugural Women’s World Cup in the Philippines in November.
Runner-up to the Iran in back-to-back editions, Japan started right on the front foot at the Hohhot Sports Centre and took a two-goal lead through Risa Ikadai and Kyoka Takahashi inside four minutes.
A wasteful Iran managed to pull one back four minutes after the break, with Fereshteh Khosravi teeing up Maral Torkaman, who finished with a powerful strike.
Yukari Miyahara restored the two-goal cushion for the Japanese on the counter in the 30th minute, before Torkaman reduced the deficit to one again two minutes later with her fourth goal of the competition.
Iranian girls poured forward after that but despite utilizing the power play, the equalizer eluded them as Japan held on to progress to a third straight final.
“I’m proud of my players’ performance and I’m happy to win the match and qualify for the World Cup. Japan’s strength is unity and all the players worked hard for this win. It was a really tough game. Reaching the World Cup is an honor,” Japanese head coach said after the game.
“Iran is our biggest opponent in Asia. One of our goals was beating them but most importantly, we focused on ourselves and had self-belief after the hard work we put in. Discipline and unity were key to our success.”
Iran coach Forouzan Soleimani admitted that her side couldn’t recover after conceding the first goal.
“I knew once we conceded that it was going to be very tough for us. Our goal was to be champions for the third time but we couldn’t achieve it,” said the Iranian.
“We played much better in the second half and for sure, we were the better team. However, there is still the World Cup spot and we will be motivated to win against China,” added the Iranian.
The writing was always on the wall for Soleimani’s team after a poor preparation for the tournament was followed by a shaky start in China.
Iran edged out the Philippines 1-0 in their opener, and then beat Hong Kong 3-1 to secure a knockout spot, before its 12-game winning run in the Asian Cup came to an end against Vietnam in controversial, embarrassing fashion.
Soleimani’s girls deliberately played for a goalless draw in their final group game, tanking the match to avoid Japan until the final. The cynical approach, however, backfired as Japan’s shock defeat to Thailand later on the final day of the group fixtures forced the two powerhouses into the same half of the knockout bracket.