Media Wire

AFC Asian Cup 2023: Iran eliminate Japan after late penalty by Jahanbakhsh

Iran knocked four-times champions Japan out of the 2023 Asian Cup with a 2-1 victory in their quarter-final clash after skipper Alireza Jahanbakhsh converted a penalty in stoppage time at Education City Stadium in Qatar 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, drawing a loud roar from the Iranian fans in the arena.

When the final whistle blew, the Iran bench emptied onto the pitch and an emotional Jahanbakhsh dropped to the turf in relief while many players wept tears of joy.

Iran, who are seeking a record-tying fourth Asian Cup title, had not beaten Japan in 19 years while their victory also extended Amir Ghalenoei’s unbeaten streak to 16 matches since he took charge in March.

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 Suzuki into the bottom corner.

Japan had dominated possession in the first half but it was Iran who controlled proceedings after the equaliser as they initiated wave after wave of attacks and the pressure finally paid off in second-half added time.

Japan’s Ko Itakura made a mess of a clearance in the 94th minute and as he tried to recover, he tripped Hossein Kanani in the box and the referee immediately pointed to the spot, with Jahanbakhsh converting to whip their fans into a frenzy.

IFP Media Wire

Reports and views published in the Media Wire section have been retrieved from other news agencies and websites, and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Iran Front Page (IFP) news website. The IFP may change the headlines of the reports in a bid to make them compatible with its own style of covering Iran News, and does not make any changes to the content. The source and URL of all reports and news stories are mentioned at the bottom of each article.

Recent Posts

Envoy condemns Israel’s admission of murdering of Hamas chief in Iran

Iran's permanent ambassador to the UN Amir Saeid Iravani has strongly condemned Israel’s “brazen admission”…

31 minutes ago

Lifting WhatsApp, Google Play filtering in Iran ‘a positive step, but more needed’

Lifting of the filtering on WhatsApp and Google Play on the internet in Iran on…

34 minutes ago

Malayer’s mini world: A tourism gem in western Iran

The “Mini World” recreational and tourism complex in Malayer, in the western Iranian province of…

51 minutes ago

Video: Sisi warns of ‘chaos and destruction’ in Egypt following Assad’s fall in Syria

An Egyptian intelligence-owned television channel has released a propaganda video of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi…

2 hours ago

Israel kills at least 8 in West Bank raids

The Israeli army and military aircraft have killed at least eight Palestinians, including two women…

2 hours ago

Iran lifts Ban on WhatsApp, Google Play in a landmark decision

In a significant move towards greater digital accessibility, the Supreme Council of Cyberspace, chaired by…

13 hours ago