Japan lifted the AFC U23 Championships last night to cap off a memorable three week tournament full of fantastic play, high drama and late goals. At QSL online, we have decided to look back on some key talking points from the Qatar tournament.

Qatar where undoubtedly one of the surprise sides of the tournament, the young Maroons finished fourth in the tournament playing to a feverish home support. Understandably the disappointment on missing out on the Olympics losing in extra time in the 3/4^th place playoff to Iraq is a major blow for Felix Sanchez’s side; however the side now has experience and if nurtured right could form the core of the side at the 2019 Asian cup held in the UAE. Performances from the likes of Abdelkarim Hassan, top scorer Ahmed Alaaeldin and Ali Afif mean that the future is bright for Qatar.



Last minute drama was rampant in the Knock-out phases of the U23 championships. Winners Japan might not have even got through to the final had Riki Harakawa not struck in the 93^rd minute to sink Iraq in the semifinals. Likewise Qatari hearts where broken twice in the semi-final and 3/4^th place play off thanks to extra time goals.

One interesting development tactically was the reliance on the playmaker. Three of the final four sides channeled most of their attacking play through an influential playmaker. Qatar relied on the vision of Ali Afif who knocked up plenty of assists in the championships. The Korean Republic relied heavily on the skill of Bayern Leverkusen midfielder Ryu Seung-woo to shoot them to the final. Whilst Japan number 10 Shoya Nakajima was voted the tournament’s most valuable player.

Fans also made the U23 championships a special one. Expat fans from across Qatar came out to support their respective teams. Jordan drew an impressive attendance for all their games at the tournament. Over 4,000 fans watched them in their Quarter final tie against the Korean Republic. Hosts Qatar also drew impressive numbers of fans, many of them packing out the Jasim Bin Hamad stadium for the young Maroons’s matches. The final also saw noisy and vocal support from the Japanese and Korean fans.

It was perhaps fitting then that the final match served up plenty of drama. Japan came from behind to defeat the Korean Republic 3-2. The Koreans looked to be in cruise control after two goals from Kwon Chang-hoon and Jin Seong-uk. However the Samurai blue fought back into the tie and clinched it in the 81^st minute courtesy of substitute Takuma Asano.