Tottenham U19 come from behind to defeat Japan U19
Tottenham U19 had an exciting start at the International U19 Four Nations Cup, coming from behind to win 2-1 against Japan U19. Despite taking an early lead through Kaneko Shota, Japan U19 allowed Tottenham U19 to fight back and ultimately win thanks to goals from Daniel Akendayini and Oduwa.
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| Kaneko Shota opened the scoring for Japan U19. (Photo: Minh Chien/Vietnam+) |
Immediately after the referee's whistle, the Japanese U19 team proactively pushed their formation forward into Tottenham's U19 half. This proactive approach helped the Asian team achieve their desired outcome early on.
In the 8th minute, following a beautiful attacking move, Japan U19 took the lead with a powerful shot from player number 15, Kaneko Shota.
The early lead gave the Japanese U19 team a good advantage. Minamino Takumi could have doubled the lead if he had been more clinical.
Meanwhile, despite being considered physically and athletically superior to their opponents, the Tottenham U19 team played rather disjointedly. Therefore, the efforts of the English players were unable to secure an equalizer, except for a header that went straight to goalkeeper Toru.
However, in the second half, Tottenham showed a very different face compared to what happened in the first 45 minutes. And just 5 minutes after the second half began, Tottenham U19 scored the equalizer, making the score 1-1, thanks to Daniel Akendayini.
After this goal, the match became much more exciting as both teams exchanged attacks amidst the enthusiastic cheers of tens of thousands of spectators at Thong Nhat Stadium.
It wasn't until the 73rd minute that the goal came, and it belonged to Tottenham U19. Striker Oduwa made a solo run past the Japan U19 defense before unleashing an accurate shot to give his team the lead.
Having taken the lead, Tottenham U19 played defensively to protect their advantage, while Japan U19 were forced to push forward in search of an equalizer.
Japanese players created a series of dangerous situations in front of Tottenham U19's goal. Notably, Japan U19 had two consecutive shots but were unable to beat goalkeeper MC Gee.
In the 90+1 minute, Japan U19 had a clear chance to equalize, but unfortunately, their final shot hit the crossbar. Japan U19 had to accept defeat in their opening match.
According to VNA
