World Cup qualifiers: Japan 0-1 Vietnam

Ayase Ueda got the best chance so far when he faced keeper Nguyen Manh with a wide angle to finish, but defender Que Ngoc Hai made an excellent clearance to stop the shot.

Haraguchi made another long-range attempt and his shot only needed a bit more accuracy.

After conceding, Japan pushed forward and put tremendous pressure on Vietnam with plenty of chances created. However, Vietnam’s defense were able to withstand it.

Takefusa Kubo gave Thanh Binh a hard time as he constantly dribbled past the young defender of Vietnam using his pace and skill. From such plays, Japan had two dangerous headers toward keeper Tran Nguyen Manh.

Japan has made three shots so far while Vietnam only had one, but it was a goal.

From a counter-attack, the ball was passed back to Genki Haraguchi, who took a shot from long distance but it went over the bar.

Japan’s Kaoru Mitoma accelerated down the left flank and made a dangerous pass inside the box, but the Vietnam defenders got the situation under control. In the previous game against Australia, Mitoma scored two goals in the last minutes to help Japan win 2-0.

The host Japan play the game in blue and Vietnam in white.