NEWS

Japan got off to a good start in defence of their Asian title, beating Malaysia 4-0 in their opening Group D match of the AFC Under-16 Championship on Sunday at MHSK Stadium in Tashkent.

Takashi Usami netted twice while Gaku Shibasaki and Takumi Miyayoshi also scored.
Japan went to the top of their group after the United Arab Emirates and Yemen battled to a 1-1 draw.
The young Boys in Blue attacked from the outset and created chances through defender Ryuki Nakajima, midfielder Usami and forward Keisuke Kanda.
The opener came in the 32nd minute when midfielder Shibasaki blasted in a shot from long range. Two minutes later, Usami dribbled through the Malaysian defence to fire home his team’s second goal.
Substitute forward Takumi Miyayoshi made it 3-0 for Japan in the 65th minute and Usami got himself on the score sheet again by pouncing on a Malaysian clearance error in the 70th minute.
Japan Under-16 coach Yutaka Ikeuchi commented, “We showed some of our strengths, but it was not easy to take control of the game as our opponents started well and gave us a hard time. We managed to win, which is the most important thing for us.”
Japan will play UAE on Tuesday and Yemen on Thursday.
In the 16-team tournament, the top two finishers from each group will advance to the quarterfinals on October 12. The semifinals will take place on October 15 with the final scheduled for October 18.
The top four teams in the tournament will earn a berth in next year’s Under-17 World Cup in Nigeria.