AFC U-17 Asian Cup 2023: India face Japan in do or die clash

India lost to Uzbekistan in the previous clash.

It’s now or never for India at the AFC U-17 Asian Cup as they find themselves on the brink of the exit of the tournament. Only a miracle can save the Blue Colts. The young side were handed a heartbreaking 1-0 defeat by Uzbekistan in their second group stage fixture. 

JAPAN VS INDIA: LIVE UPDATES

Their loss to Uzbekistan means that they are now third on the table and only a win against plus a marginal defeat for Uzbekistan can seal their place in the knockouts. Next up, Bibiano Fernandes’ boys will face their biggest challenge against defending champions Japan. 

On that note, let us take a look at the preview.

The Stakes

Japan

Japan are the defending champions of the tournament and are also one of the favorites to win the tournament and defend their title. They started their campaign with a 1-1 draw against Uzbekistan where they displayed a good performance.

But they chose to tear Vietnam apart in their next game and sent a warning to all the teams in the tournament that they mean business. They sealed the game with an emphatic 4-0 victory and virtually kept one foot into the knockouts. 

India

It’s a do-or-die situation for India. After the defeat against Uzbekistan, the equation for India to qualify for the next round has become even trickier. India have to win against Japan while hoping that Vietnam do them a favour by defeating Uzbekistan by a narrow margin.

However, both scenarios are very unlikely to happen. India were considered to be one of the two teams to make it out of their group. Bibiano's team has crashed miserably and now find themselves in an unwanted situation.

Team & Injury News

Both teams are expected to have fully fit squads going into their final group stage clash.

Head-to-head

It will be the first ever clash between India and Japan (at an underage level).

Predicted Line-ups

Japan (4-4-2)

Wataru Goto (GK); Shotaro Shibata, Kaito Tsuchiya, Kotaro Honda, Keita Kosugi (C); Joi Yamamoto, Shungo Sugiura, Yotaro Nakajima, Ryunosuke Sato; Kohei Mochizuki, Yutaka Michiwaki

India (4-2-3-1)

Sahil Poonia (GK); Mukul Panwar, Suraj Kumar, Ricky Meitei, Malemngamba Singh Thokchom; Danny Meitei, Gurnaj Singh Grewal; Lalpekhua, Vanlalpeka Guite, Korou Singh Thingujam (C); Thanglalsoun Gangte

Players to watch

Sahil Poonia (India)

Sahil has been India’s main man between the sticks. Although he hasn’t kept a clean sheet, Shail has been really good under the bar. He has made numerous saves, including a few fingertip and 1v1 saves. 

In the last game, it was Sahil's brilliant outing that kept India hold fort against Uzbekistan for majority of the game. He was tested several times and came up with superb saves every time. If India wants to make history against Japan, Sahil’s performance must be top notch. Moreover, he is a great prospect and if nurtured properly, he can go on to become one of India’s biggest assets.

Yutaka Michiwaki (Japan)

Often considered to be Japan’s most lethal weapon in attack, Michiwaki has delivered on the hype that grew before the tournament started. The forward has been in great form and has already scored twice in the tournament. 

He likes to start strong and has so far scored the fastest goal of the tournament against Vietnam. The Japanese U-17 international has caused a lot of trouble to all opposition defenders he has faced thus far. Expect him to do the same against India, come Friday evening.

Did You Know?

• It will be the first time that India will face off against Japan.
• Japan’s Yutaka Michiwaki has scored the fastest goal in the tournament in the 2nd minute against Vietnam.
• Japan has scored five goals while India have scored only one so far in the tournament.

Telecast

The match between India and Japan in the AFC U-17 Asian Cup will be played on Friday, 23 June at the ​​Rajamangala Stadium in Bangkok. The kick-off time for the game is 5:30 PM IST. The game will be live streamed on JioTV (India) and on True ID TV (Thailand).