Alireza
Jahanbakhsh scored a 96th-minute penalty to give Iran a dramatic 2-1 win over
Japan on Saturday and set up an Asian Cup semi-final against holders Qatar or
Uzbekistan.
It capped a
stunning comeback from Iran,
who were behind at the break but roared back to dump out the pre-tournament
favourites and keep alive their dream of a first Asian title
since 1976.
Hidemasa
Morita gave Japan,
who were looking to lift the trophy for a record-extending fifth time, the
lead midway through the first half in front of 36,000 at Education
City Stadium in Doha.
Mohammad
Mohebi drew Iran -
themselves champions three times - level 10 minutes after half time and
they dominated the remainder of the game.
But just
when it looked like extra time, Kou Itakura brought Hossein
Kanaanizadegan down in the box and skipper Jahanbakhsh held
his nerve to spark delirium on the pitch and in the stands.
Coach Amir
Ghalenoei said his players were "fantastic" in the second
half. "They gave everything for the Iranian people," he said. "This
can be a turning point for Iranian football."
Ghalenoei, whose side squeezed through on
penalties over Syria in the last 16, took a potshot at critics of
him and his side back home. "I am not saying criticism is not good,
but some people in the last 11 months tried to ruin the national team," he
said.
Under
pressure
Iran, missing the suspended Porto
forward Mehdi Taremi, had the first sight of goal on 13 minutes
when Feyenoord winger Jahanbakhsh fizzed the ball over
goalkeeper Zion Suzuki's crossbar.
Japan
seemed flustered initially by their opponents' physical approach,
but they were able to give as good as they got and Itakura picked up a
yellow card for cynically stopping an Iran attack.
On 28
minutes Hajime Moriyasu's side went ahead when Morita bustled his way
through a weak challenge and with Iran's defence AWOL, the midfielder
was all alone with only Alireza Beiranvand to beat.
He did not
strike the ball convincingly but the goalkeeper tried to save with his legs
instead of his hands and the ball hit an outstretched limb before
looping into the net.
Japan, beaten by Qatar in the 2019 final,
went to the break in the lead but there was little in it. In the 55th
minute Iran pulled level when Sardar Azmoun slipped in Mohebi and
he beat an exposed Suzuki with a smart first-time finish.
It was all
Iran now. Mohebi headed just wide at the far post and then an
Azmoun header flashed narrowly past Suzuki's post with the goalkeeper beaten,
before the drama at the death.
"They
put us under a lot of pressure and we could not resist their
pressure," said Moriyasu, whose side were beaten 2-1 by Iraq in
the group phase and conceded eight goals during the tournament.
"Against
strong opponents we cannot concede goals like we did today. We should
have scored a second, and if we had, the game would have been different."
Asked about
the performance of defender Itakura,
Moriyasu replied: "I will leave the criticism to the media."
Qatar face Uzbekistan later Saturday, with South Korea playing Jordan in
the first semi-final, on Tuesday.
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