Ratings: Danny Meitei silver lining as India get thrashed by Japan in AFC U-17 Asian Cup 2023

India have been knocked out of the AFC U-17 Asian Cup 2023.

The Indian U-17 team were handed a humiliating 8-4 defeat by Japan in their final group stage match of the 2023 AFC U-17 Asian Cup. With this defeat, India's journey at the tournament comes to an end and it couldn’t have been any worse than this.

It was a must win game for India but instead it turned out to be India’s worst defeat at the tournament. Although the boys kept on pushing and it even seemed that they would pull it off until a particular moment, the tie ended in Japan’s favour. 

On that note let us take a look at how the players performed.

Japan U-17 (By Riddhiman Sarkar)

Taisei Kamabayashi (GK) - 6

Could not do a lot about all the shots he had to face as like Sahil Poonia his youth and inexperience seemed to play a factor in him not being able to anticipate shot trajectories. 

Shotaro Shibata - 8

Bombed forward after sensing frailties down India’s flanks. Played a crucial part in the first goal as he slipped in the onrushing Yada. 

Kotaro Honda - 6.5

Vigilant about Lalpekhlua’s threat as he foiled him more than once with his pace and tackle-timing. 

Shuto Nagano - 7

The towering centre-half slammed the ball into the Indian net following a conundrum in the box. Defensively however, he committed the silliest of blunders by feinting his way towards his own goal while being pressed by Danny Meetei. 

Keita Kosugi - 6.5

The combative captain of the Samurai Blue commandeered their defence from the back and helped his entire unit motor forward with confidence. Substituted at the break by Yoshinaga.

Gakuto Kawamura - 6.5

Opened the scoring for Japan with a net-rippling, composed strike from Ryunosuke Yada’s cross. Intercepted Surajkumar Singh’s pass and released Gaku Nawata for the second goal.

Ryunosuke Yada - 7.5

Found Kawamura with a simple cutback for the first goal. Although the deep-lying playmaker was far from his territory, he executed his responsibilities to perfection.

Daiki Miyagawa - 6.5

Set up Nawata after intercepting a badly received pass from Gurnaj Singh Grewal. The only blemish in his performance on the night was his own goal.

Kohei Mochizuki - 8

The midfield machine was full of incessant running as he scored after toeing the ball into the far corner with the slightest of touches off Yoshinaga’s cross. He then went past the whole Indian defence to set up substitute Nakajima for Japan’s sixth goal. 

Gaku Nawata - 9

Collected the ball after Gurnaj failed to collect Suraj’s pass near the centre line and ran a good 20 yards before slotting it past Sahil. Displayed tremendous balance and composure for the second strike as he picked up Rento Takaoka’s pass and slalomed past Suraj to score from a tight angle. Subbed off at half-time for Sugiura.

Rento Takaoka - 7.5

Drifted in and out with ease and unleashed a few venomous, curling strikes as he went on to assist Nawata for the second goal. Exhibited astonishing work-rate as his next assist came after a gravity-defying stretch to reclaim the ball.

Substitutes

Shungo Sugiura - 7.5

Replaced Nawata at the break and converted Honda’s pass to score during the dying minutes of the match. 

Yumeki Yoshinaga - 7

The young left-back came on in the captain’s stead at half-time and set up Mochizuki for Japan’s fifth goal, with a deft ground cross. Could not match Korou’s pace for his run and finish in the 77th minute.

Yotaro Nakajima - 7.5

Rattled the top corner with a thunderous strike after collecting the ball from Mochizuki. Went on to serve Sugiura on a silver plate for the eighth goal.   

Gota Yamaguchi - 7.5

The left-footed midfielder picked up Takaoka’s ball and ghosted past two Indian players before burying the ball into the bottom corner in the 96th minute.

Yuya Kuroki - 6.5

Came on in Shibata’s stead during the break and completed the job more or less.

India (By Yash Pratap Singh)

Sahil Poonia (GK) - 6.5

Sahil conceded eight goals. He came off the line to make a few saves and also pulled off a fingertip save after India scored their first goal, to keep his side in the game. Moreover, he also saved a penalty in the second half.

Ricky Meetei - 6.0

He made overlapping runs in attack. Ricky also made a few important defensive contributions with his blocks and clearances but he wasn’t up to the mark with his man marking. But the full-back kept on defending and putting in challenges until the last minute.

Surajkumar Singh - 6.0

Suraj did not have the best of outings tonight. He did make a few important blocks, but couldn’t stop the Japanese attackers from scoring so many goals past them. Overall a disappointing performance.

Mukul Panwar - 6.0

Mukul was one of the changes made by Bibinao Fernandes in the starting line-up. He started off well with his interceptions and crucial blocks but couldn’t make much of an impact after Japan activated their beast mode. Moreover, he also gave away a penalty in the second half.

Malemngamba Singh - 6.0

He was good with his ball distribution skills and even maintained a good passing accuracy. But unlike the last game he wasn’t at the peak of his powers. Overall it wasn’t a convincing performance from him given the promise he had shown few days back. 

Gurnaj Singh Grewal - 6.5

Gurnaj came back to defend every time his defenders needed him and even helped in the attack. He made crucial blocks and interceptions during the match.

Korou Singh - 8.0

The skipper dropped a better performance in comparison to the first two fixtures. He initiated lightning quick counter attacks. In the second half he created two successive golden chances for his side but no one managed to produce an end product. The skipper also scored his first goal of the tournament.

Lalpekhlua - 7.0

The winger contributed a lot in attack and looked a completely different player in the second half. He created chances and combined very well with his teammates up front. Moreover, he also had two chances to score but the keeper was prepared.

Thanglalsoun Gangte - 7.0

He had two excellent opportunities to score in the second half but couldn’t convert any of them. His first attempt was saved by the keeper while the second one went over the crossbar. But, he did play an important part in India’s second goal.

Vanlalpeka Guite - 7.5

Although Japan scored so many goals past India, Guite did not stop believing. He was undoubtedly India’s one of the best players on the pitch. He scored the opening goal for India through a free-kick and played an important role in creating the second one.

Danny Meitei - 8.0

Danny was very solid with his interceptions and defensive contributions. He won the ball from the Japanese attackers on numerous occasions and averted danger. Moreover, he also scored the second goal for India in the second half and then went on to net a brilliant solo goal, India's third.

Substitutes

Akash Tirkey - N/A

He came on very late in the second half to replace Danny Meetei, but couldn’t make any impact.

Shahwat Panwar - N/A

He was brought on in the 87th minute to replace Gangte. He couldn’t make any impact on the game.

Gogocha Chungkham - N/A

He was brought on during the injury time.