DOHA: Iran knocked four-time champions Japan out of the Asian Cup with a 2-1 victory in their quarter-final clash after skipper Alireza Jahanbakhsh converted a 96th-minute penalty at Education City Stadium on Saturday.

With the match tied at 1-1 and headed to extra time, Iran won a penalty in the fourth minute of added time and Jahanbakhsh stepped up to blast the ball into the top corner to spark delirium on the pitch and in the stands.

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.

“They gave everything for the Iranian people,” said Iran coach Amir Ghalenoei. “This can be a turning point for Iranian football.”

Iran will find out their semi-final opponents later on Saturday when defending champions Qatar take on Uzbekistan. Jordan play South Korea in the other semi-final.

After a cagey start to a physical contest, Japan had taken the lead through Hidemasa Morita who made a run past four defenders before beating Alireza Beiranvand in goal to silence the Iran fans in the stadium.

But the volume went up when Iran equalised 10 minutes into the second half with a sublime move where Sardar Azmoun played the ball through to Mohammad Mohebi, who ran around his marker before slipping his shot past Zion Suzuki into the bottom corner.

But just when it looked like extra time, Kou Itakura brought Hossein Kanaanizadegan down in the box and Jahanbakhsh held his nerve.

“They put us under a lot of pressure and we could not resist their pressure,” said Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu. “Against strong opponents we cannot concede goals like we did today. We should have scored a second goal, and if we had, this game would have been different.”

SON MAGIC

On Friday, South Korea advanced to the semi-finals with a 2-1 comeback win over Australia in extra time at Al Janoub Stadium after Son Heung-min scored the winner with a sublime free kick.

It was another great escape for the Koreans, who needed a 96th-minute penalty from Hwang Hee-chan to stay alive after Australia took the lead in the first half through Craig Goodwin.

Tottenham’s Son, Asia’s best player and South Korea’s skipper, had yet to fully make his mark at the tournament in Qatar but he delivered when it counted.

First he won a penalty when Lewis Miller brought him down in injury time at the end of normal time, then he stepped up to curl home a sublime free-kick from the edge of the box in the 104th minute.

“Obviously it was anot­her drama, we’re extremely happy and thrilled to go through. It was a hard fight with Australia, we expected it. But to go 120 minutes again, I’m proud of this team and their spirit,” South Korea coach Juergen Klinsmann said.

Australia finished the match with 10 men after Aiden O’Neill was red-carded for lunging at Hwang at the end of the first period of extra time. “We’re devastated at the moment, quite emotional for all the players and the staff,” said Australia’s coach Graham Arnold. “For the first 90-odd minutes we did very well until giving that penalty away. It’s been a great tournament for a lot of my players.”

Published in Dawn, February 4th, 2024