Takeru Furusato admitted to feeling a burden off his shoulders as Japan finished their AFC Beach Soccer Asian Cup™
Thailand 2025 campaign with a 3-1 win over Saudi Arabia in the third-place playoff, which secured their place in the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in May.
Furusato, who mostly played second fiddle to first-choice keeper Yusuke Kawai, also credited Saudi Arabia for keeping Japan on their toes until the final whistle.
“I am so relieved that we emerged victorious,” said Furusato. “It is hard to watch the action from the bench, so I’m really glad that I helped my team win this crucial game.
“We were in control of the game in the first period, but after the first break, Saudi Arabia truly tested our strengths as they completely changed their game plan.”
While basking in the joy of punching a ticket to the global contest, the 24-year-old vowed to come back stronger in the next edition of the AFC Beach Soccer Asian Cup.
“Any competition we take part in, our goal is always to become champions,” he said. “We couldn’t get our fourth title this time, but in the next Asian Cup, we’ll come back stronger. For now, we will turn our attention to the World Cup and hope to become world champions.”
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s Rabyi Sufyani said it was a matter of fine details that decided the final scoreline and praised his teammates for achieving their best performance on the continental stage yet.
“We lost due to some small mistakes, but we displayed a strong performance and managed to apply pressure on Japan,” said the Saudi Arabia captain.
“We had wonderful moments in the competition, ranging from our maiden appearance in the semi-finals to beating the hosts in front of a packed home crowd. I am confident we will be a stronger force to reckon with in the upcoming editions.”
