Japan began their AFC Under 19 tournament with a 2-0 loss to Iran on an early goal from Behnam Barzay and a clincher 2-0 goal just before the hour mark from Hossein Fazeli. Japan tried to get back into the game – substitutes Kosuke Onosa and Ryuta Tanabe were thrown on – but were unsuccessful in this opening match and, taken with the 1-1 draw between UAE and Kuwait in the group’s other game, Japan find themselves at the bottom of the group.

The young Samurai Blue take on Kuwait on Monday night knowing nothing less than a win will keep them in the competition in the UAE. They face the hosts on Wednesday night in what may be a match to decide the group winners.

The four semi-finalists of this 16-team tournament will automatically qualify for the U-20 World Cup in 2013 in Colombia.