In the match taking place in the early morning of May 16, U17 Japan showed superior strength when defeating U17 Tajikistan with a score of 5-0. The East Asian representative continuously put pressure from the first minutes but had to wait until the 42nd minute to have the opening goal scored by Kitahara after an assist from Iwatsuchi.
The turning point of the match came in the 54th minute when Kabirov of U17 Tajikistan received a red card after fouling Hoshi. Playing with more players, U17 Japan completely controlled the game and continuously scored more goals.
Kitahara completed a double in the 60th minute, before Saito and Satomi scored respectively. In the 90th minute, Khodzhiev scored an own goal, closing a resounding victory for the team from the land of the rising sun.
Meanwhile, U17 China surprised when they reversed the score to defeat host U17 Saudi Arabia with a score of 3-1 to win a ticket to the semi-finals.
The West Asian representative opened the score in the 21st minute thanks to Bayomi. However, U17 China quickly brought the match back to balance with Wan Xiang's equalizer after a technical handling situation.
In the second half, the Chinese youth team played more effectively and created a difference with sharp counter-attacks. Zhao Songyuan scored to increase the score to 2-1 in the 59th minute before Sifan sealed the 3-1 victory with a solo goal in injury time.
According to the draw results, U17 China will meet the winner in the match between U17 Vietnam and U17 Australia in the semi-finals. Meanwhile, U17 Japan is waiting for the winner in the remaining quarter-final match between U17 Uzbekistan and U17 South Korea.
The quarter-final match between U17 Vietnam and U17 Australia will take place at 0:00 on May 17 (Vietnam time). This is an opportunity for coach Cristiano Roland and his team to continue to make their mark after winning a ticket to the FU17 World Cup 2026.
