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Sharjah: It's a different Japan that scored a 1-0 win against Saudi Arabia on Monday in the AFC African Cup of Africa World Cup.
Haijme Moriyasu's team chose to play on defense. This is a move that has paid off for the Samurai Blue, which has maintained its bid for a fifth continental title in overtime record.
Japan's victory was won by Takehiro Tomiyasu's header in the 20th minute, but they found themselves defending for most of the match.
However, Moriyasu's men resisted West Asians to advance to the quarter-finals where they will face Park Hang-seo's Vietnam on Thursday.
"Winning is very important and facing Saudi Arabia, one of the best teams in Asia, has been very difficult. My players played with patience, they kept a blank sheet. We have a few days left to recover and we are focused on the next game.
"We wanted to keep the ball, see more of the ball but Saudi Arabia controlled the game. After the goal, Saudi Arabia was aggressive in attack, but the key to our success was our patience.
"We are progressing as a team. People might say that we could have done better at the offensive, but I think we showed everyone today that we are also good at defense, "said the coach. Japan's chief, Moriyasu.
Match Summary – January 21st
Japan had been compelling in the group stage when its offensive football had seen them win a victory over Turkmenistan, Oman and Uzbekistan.
But the team that went to Sharjah on Monday played a different type of football and Moriyasu was proud of how his team adapted.
"As you could see in our debut, our game plan was obvious. We wanted to exert pressure but also to defend ourselves.
"I told the players before the match that Saudi Arabia would attack us and that's what happened, especially after the goal. I do not think they expected us to score first and they spent the rest of the evening trying to find the equalizer.
"We won because we read the game well and it was the key today."
Saudi Arabia's head coach Juan Antonio Pizzi was disappointed with the result but said he was satisfied with his team's performance despite the lack of finish.
"I am extremely disappointed with the result but satisfied with the way my players have played against Japan. They played with pride and the movement was good, but we did not find the finishing touch, "said Pizzi, whose future is uncertain, his contract only until the end of the Cup. AFC Asia.
"We tried to control the game from the start and we had a good deal of possession but we just could not run in the last third and it cost us."
Source: the-afc.com
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