The dramatic final, which ended 3-3 after extra time, saw Japan finally claim their maiden title after finishing runners-up in 2015 and 2018, with Suga attributing the end of the long wait to collective leadership and meticulous preparation.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m very happy we have finally become champions. I\u2019m proud of my players,\u201d said Suga. \u201cThailand are a very good team and it was a difficult match, but our players performed well and became champions.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite falling behind in extra time after twice having taken the lead, Japan responded with composure, executing Suga\u2019s strategy effectively before sealing victory in the penalty shootout.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe knew we had to change something when Thailand pressed forward following the 3-2 scoreline. We utilised our pivots effectively. That was the strategy to level the tie.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur goal was to neutralise their 1v1 threats. Thailand have very skilled players but we relied on our tactical discipline to see us through.\u201d\\<\/p>\n
Item 10 of 10
\nJapan’s preparations included simulated shootout scenarios, a decision that paid dividends.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe practiced penalties regularly and imagined this situation. The players were mentally prepared, and they executed very well. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis victory is for everyone who supported us. The F.League Women, the local leagues and all who contribute to Japanese futsal. This result belongs to them as well.\u201d
\nimage content
\nDespite the heartbreaking defeat, Thailand head coach Thanatorn Santanaprasit was proud of his players for their fighting spirit and resilience.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m very proud of my players. Even though we missed the chance to win our first title, I\u2019m very pleased with how they played,\u201d said Thanatorn. <\/p>\n
\u201cIn the first half, Japan pressed well and we had to rely on long balls. We made some errors but worked harder to equalise. But after taking the lead we conceded again due to pressure.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome players lacked confidence going into the penalties. We only selected those who felt ready. We\u2019ll now set our sights on getting ready for the World Cup.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The dramatic final, which ended 3-3 after extra time, saw Japan finally claim their maiden title after finishing runners-up in 2015 and 2018, with Suga attributing the end of the long wait to collective leadership and meticulous preparation. \u201cI\u2019m very happy we have finally become champions. I\u2019m proud of my players,\u201d said Suga. \u201cThailand are […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":1063560,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20967],"tags":[3733,28042],"class_list":["post-1063559","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-afc-news","tag-afc","tag-afc-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1063559","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1063559"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1063559\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1063561,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1063559\/revisions\/1063561"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1063560"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1063559"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1063559"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1063559"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}