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FAITH IN YOUTH CONTINUES TO PAY OFF AS JAPAN MARCH ON INTO OLYMPIC QUARTERFINALS

Japan booked their place in the Olympic men's football tournament on Saturday with a game to spare after Rihito Yamamoto scrambled home the only goal of the game in the 82nd minute for a 1-0 win over Mali. Koji Watanabe/Getty Images

 Japan are no strangers to going far in the men's football tournament at the Olympics.

Even if they are still to establish themselves among the world's top teams, Japan have finished fourth in two of the past three editions of the Games -- narrowly missing out on a coveted medal in both London and on home soil in Tokyo.

But even with the high standards they have set for themselves in recent times, the Paris Olympics are going better than expected.

With two games down and one still to go in the group stage, Japan are just one of two teams to have already booked their place in the quarterfinals -- alongside newly-crowned European champions Spain.

Granted, the Samurai Blue are hardly slouches considering they are one of Asia's traditional powerhouses and currently sit a creditable 18th in the FIFA world rankings.

Yet, the fact that Japan are the only team in the ongoing men's football tournament to have fielded an entirely under-23 team -- opting against turning to the three allowed overage players -- makes their displays so far that much more impressive.

An opening-day 5-0 rout of Paraguay was followed up by a less straightforward 1-0 win over Mali on Saturday evening.

While the emphatic triumph over Paraguay -- which was aided by an early red card for the opposition -- was a display of cohesion and panache, the victory over Mali perhaps gave a stronger indication over the legitimacy of their medal quest.

On this occasion, they faced a much tougher challenge -- especially without a numerical advantage.

It meant that, even though they still tried -- and, at times, managed -- to play with the same sort of expansiveness that they achieved against the Paraguayans, the contest was not always on their terms.

Mali, with plenty of pace down the wings and a direct approach led by spearhead Cheickna Doumbia, also caused the Japanese far more uncomfortable moments than they had endured in their campaign opener.

And still, Japan passed the test -- although it might have been a far different story if Doumbia had not missed an injury-time penalty.

Goalkeeper Leo Kokubo showed why he could be a pivotal figure -- especially for a team that is constanly looking to be on the front foot -- with a series of fine saves.

In the engine room, captain Joel Chima Fujita and Rihito Yamamoto never stopped trying to initiate the brand of football coach Go Oiwa is asking of them, with the latter eventually emerging as the match-winner with an opportunistic strike with just eight minutes remaining.

The Samurai Blue also showed they have decent depth with the likes of Ryotaro Araki and Fuki Yamada coming into the starting XI, while Kein Sato and Shota Fujio again offered an injection of energy coming off the bench.

For a squad bereft of experienced campaigners, the way they grinded out the result was exactly what will be required come the knockout round -- especially if Japan want to claim a first men's football medal since 1968.

If Tuesday's final round of group-stage action plays out as expected, the Japanese should avoid a clash with Spain and will be confident in their prospects regardless of whether it is Egypt or Dominican Republic they meet in the last eight.

Still, it could very likely be Argentina -- boasting notable names such as Julián Álvarez and Nicolás Otamendi -- that will be waiting if they reach the semis.

If they do have to settle for the third place playoff once again, it could easily be hosts France or Spain vying with them for the bronze medal.

The former, in particular, have two formidable overage attackers with Premier League experience in Alexandre Lacazette and Jean-Philippe Mateta, not to mention young starlets such as Michael Olise, Rayan Cherki and Manu Koné.

Only time will tell if Japan's decision not to bolster their team -- and their medal prospects -- with senior stalwarts of their own will come back to haunt them.

For now, however, their faith in youth is paying off.

- Gabriel Tan 

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TWO GOALS IN SIX MINUTES EARN MALI WIN OVER SOUTH AFRICA

 

Themba Zwane. Reuters 

Mali took advantage of an early let-off to beat South Africa 2-0 in the Africa Cup of Nations on Tuesday and take the lead in Group E.

After Percy Tau missed a penalty for South Africa, Mali captain Hamari Traore broke the deadlock after an hour and Lassine Sinayoko added a second six minutes later to put the west Africans ahead of Namibia on goal difference in the standings.

Traore was quickest to react and scored from centimetres out after South Africa goalkeeper Ronwen Williams had barely kept out a curling free kick from Sekou Koita at the Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium.

The second goal came soon after as a through ball put Sinayoko goal side and he shrugged off two defensive challenges to score from close range.

'NO PAPERS, NI GAMES' SAY WORKERS BLOCKING PARIS OLYMPIC ARENA

Reuters 

Workers blocked activity at the construction site of an Olympic arena in northern Paris on Tuesday to press their demands for contracts and French residency permits.

Around 120 workers entered the site at 7am local time (0500 GMT) on Tuesday, saying they planned to stay until their demands are met.

Around 20 of the striking workers said they have been employed on the site of the Porte de la Chapelle arena, which is set to host badminton and gymnastic competitions in the 2024 summer Olympics.

The others said they worked in similar conditions at construction sites across the city.

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HIGHLIGHTS | TOTAL CHAN 2020-21 | FINAL | MALI-MOROCCO | 0-2