Japan booked a Paris Olympics berth in men's football after securing a top-three finish at the U-23 Asian Cup with a dominant 2-0 semifinal win over Iraq on Monday.
Well-taken first-half goals from Mao Hosoya and Ryotaro Araki, both set up by captain Joel Chima Fujita, sealed the deal at Doha's Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium as the Samurai Blue qualified for their eighth straight Olympics and 12th overall.
"Frankly, I'm relieved," manager Go Oiwa said. "We made plans anticipating many situations and the players responded. We shared things we had to do, which resulted in our good attack and defense."
Japan led in the 28th minute when Fujita's chipped ball released Hosoya behind the Iraq back line. The forward took it down and quickly spun away from his marker before side-footing into the far bottom corner past Iraq keeper Hussein Hasan.
Their second came with three minutes to the break when left-back Ayumu Ohata used his strength to evade two Iraq players before passing to the middle for Fujita, whose first-time through ball was controlled and slotted in by attacker Araki.
Fuki Yamada was denied by the post from close range early in the second half and Hosoya's 66th-minute header also hit the frame, while Iraq forward Blnd Azad had a deflected shot hit the bar.
"I'm happy to have secured the Olympic spot, which has been our minimum target," Fujita said. "What I'm aiming for is the Asian title, and we'll have good preparation to win that next game."
Uzbekistan beat Indonesia 2-0 to clinch their first Olympic qualification in the other semifinal, advancing to Friday's final with Japan.
The Asian champions will play in Group D in Paris with Paraguay, Mali and Israel, while the losing finalists will be in Group C alongside Spain, Egypt and the Dominican Republic.
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