IPOH – Japan made history earlier tonight by clinching its inaugural Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, defeating powerhouse Pakistan at the Azlan Shah Stadium.
The match, which ended 2-2 in normal time, was decided through a penalty shootout that saw the world number 16 Samurais defeating their opponents 4-1 on penalties.
Japan, making its sixth appearance at the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, fielded a team with an average age of 24 and scored a total of 12 goals, conceding just five in the invitational tournament.
However, Pakistan’s head coach, Roelant Oltmans, believes that his side should have comfortably won the four-quarter match, which saw his team launch a total of 28 attacks against their opponents.
“We had so many chances and should have won this game in normal time. In the first half, we had them in our pockets, and we also had numerous chances in the second half to seal the game.
“We were unfortunate in the shootout as they were much better than us at executing it, costing us the victory today. But throughout their time on the pitch, my boys showed a lot of promise, and there is still a lot for them to learn in the years to come.
“Overall, I’m pleased with their performance, but not with the result. When you’re in the final, of course, you want to win it.
“On a positive note, the team that won this tournament will not be in this year’s Nations Cup, and it’s going to be an advantage for us in our campaign,” Oltmans said after the match.
The Nations Cup is scheduled to take place from May 31 to June 9 in Poland, with the Flying Green Horses being grouped with Canada, France, and Malaysia in Pool B.
Meanwhile, Japan’s head coach Yoshihiro Anai was over the moon to see his side prevail against their opponents, despite only having a short period to prepare for the tournament.
“I’m happy that the short training sessions worked, and I hope to achieve more with this wonderful team. We only had one week to prepare and worked based on a short plan that I created with my coaching team on the challenges that this team would face throughout this tournament, and I’m happy that it worked.
“I’m proud of each and every player who fought for the country to win this prestigious title. The tournament was a great learning experience for each and every one of them.
“Pakistan has always been a good team for us to play against over the years, and both sides had many chances to win the match. Since they are a more experienced side, we knew that we had to put in more effort to defeat them in such a tough match.
“Not only Pakistan, but we also learned a lot from all the other teams that participated in this tournament, and we hope to learn more and become a formidable side in the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games,” added Anai.
Japan raced ahead through Seren Tanaka (12th minute), before Ahmad Ajaz (34th) and Abdul Rehman (37th) replied for Pakistan.
However, the Samurais equalised through Kazumasa Matsumoto (47th) to force a shootout.
In the shootout, Japan’s Kosei Kawabe, Ryoma Ooka, Seren Tanaka, and Kazumasa Matsumoto scored, while Pakistan failed to score from their opening two attempts.
Ammad Butt was the sole scorer for Pakistan in the shootout.
Approximately 5,000 fans armed with vuvuzelas and pictures of former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan attended the final.
Pakistan’s Sufyan Khan won the player of the tournament award, Malaysia’s Muhammad Azrai Aizad Abu Kamal was the top scorer with eight goals, while Japanese custodians Takumi Kitagawa and Takashi Yoshikawa were named the best goalkeepers of the tournament.
A total of 67 goals were scored in the 30th edition of the tournament, with an average of 5.58 goals per match. – May 12, 2024
