AFC Futsal Championship 2018 Qualifiers
Second Match vs Macau Futsal National Team
5 November 2017 (Sun.) Kick-off 14:30 Playing time 40min.(20min.×2)
Bangkok Arena (Bangkok, Thailand)

Japan Futsal National Team 11-0（3-0, 8-0）Macau Futsal National Team

Scores
2'　  SHIMIZU Kazuya（Japan Futsal National Team）
3'　  SHIMIZU Kazuya（Japan Futsal National Team）
16'　MINAMOTO Akira（Japan Futsal National Team）
22'　MUROTA Yuki（Japan Futsal National Team）
23'　SAITO Koichi（Japan Futsal National Team）
25'　HOSHI Shota（Japan Futsal National Team）
28'　MINAMOTO Akira（Japan Futsal National Team）
29'　MAEDONCHI Matias Hernan（Japan Futsal National Team）
30'　SHIMIZU Kazuya（Japan Futsal National Team）
35'　MAEDONCHI Matias Hernan（Japan Futsal National Team）
40'　MUROTA Yuki（Japan Futsal National Team）

Starting Line-ups
GK：SEKIGUCHI Yushi
FP：SAITO Koichi, MUROTA Yuki, YOSHIKAWA Tomoki, SHIMIZU Kazuya

Reserves
GK：YAZAWA Daimu
FP：HOSHI Shota, WATANABE Tomoaki, MINAMOTO Akira, MAEDONCHI Matias Hernan, UCHIMURA Shunta, NISHITANI Ryosuke, MORIOKA Kaoru, NIBUYA Kazuhiro

Match Report

Japan Futsal National Team, who are currently competing in the AFC Futsal Championship 2018 Qualifiers, met Macau in the second match of the group stage.

The game moved in Japan’s favor right after the kick-off. In the 2nd minute, SHIMIZU Kazuya fired in a dazzling shot into the net to open the scoring, followed by another goal after receiving a neat pass from SAITO Koichi a minute later. Japan took the early control of the match and continued to outperform the opponents by keeping better possession of the ball and fashioning promising scoring chances, but were faced with a long stretch where they struggled to score in part due to the fine saves from the Macanese goalkeeper. The scoring drought continued, but MINAMOTO Akira succeeded in netting the third off a corner in the 16th minute and extended the lead to 3-0 before halftime.

Coach Bruno GARCIA told his players before sending them back on the court, ‘We still have a lot of work to do. We are playing at our pace, but need to keep up the scoring in the second half. We will dictate and dominate the game.’

Garcia's men responded well and the goal rush for Japan started in the second half. MUROTA Yuki netted the fourth from a quick pass off a corner in the 22nd minute, and Saito Koichi struck home the fifth a minute later and HOSHI Shota added another to extend the lead to 6-0 on 25 minutes. Thereafter, the opponents lost their focus and the scoring tally continued for the Japanese squad, who scored a total of 8 goals only in the second half, before they grabbed a convincing 11-0 over Macau.

As a result, Japan with two straight wins succeeded in getting through the qualifying round regardless of the outcome of the playoff match or the final game against Chinese Taipei, who also posted back-to-back wins in the group stage, but already reserved a spot in the coming AFC Championship as the hosting country of the competition.

Japan Futsal National Team will meet Chinese Taipei in the third group-stage match at 14:30 (local time) on 6 November to secure a top spot in the group.

Coach's and Players' Comments

Bruno GARCIA, Coach (Japan Futsal National Team)
We have amended our problems from yesterday’s match and succeeded in grabbing a convincing win over Macau, whose playing style was similar to our first opponents, Mongolia. As the score indicates, we overwhelmed the opponents from the beginning to the end. However, we still haven’t achieved one of our goals in the group stage. That is to top the group and get through the qualifying round by beating hosts Chinese Taipei. We are looking to maintain our confidence that we earned in today’s game and continue to display our playing style in the final game as well.

FP #4 SAITO Koichi (NAGOYA OCEANS)
First of all, it is great that we won two consecutive games and sit in top of the group, before we play the final group-stage match. Despite a huge score difference, I don’t think our performance was perfect and there were many areas that we could have done better. Personally speaking, I scored a goal today, but I shall not satisfied with this result and continue to seek ways in which I can contribute to the team as well. We are facing tougher opponents tomorrow, but, at the same time, are looking to show even stronger Japanese team and get through the qualifiers.

FP #7 MUROTA Yuki (PESCADOLA MACHIDA)
We struggled to score in the first half, but stayed patient and continued to play our own style of football, which I find it as a positive takeaway. We will grab another win tomorrow to stretch our winning streak to three games. Your continuous support will be much appreciated.

FP #11 SHIMIZU Kazuya (FUGADOR SUMIDA)
We managed to dominate the game from the first half, which we hadn’t been able to do in the first match. In the second half, we attacked with better rhythm and I felt that our combinations among players in different sets of play improved significantly. However, I must add that we still need to fix our problems that we found in today’s match, before we enter the key match tomorrow.

FP #12 MAEDONCHI Matias Hernan (AGLEYMINA HAMAMATSU)
I believe that we performed much better in today’s game against Macau than the first match yesterday. We displayed our mental strength and competitive spirit, and kept our concentration from the beginning to the end as well. However, I am not satisfied yet. We are looking to raise our level of play and get ready to grab a win against Chinese Taipei tomorrow.

Schedule

*The schedule is subject to change due to the team condition, the weather, etc.