On March 24, Beijing time, the World Cup qualifiers in the Asian zone top 12 competition began to compete, in a focus battle in Group B, Australia and Japan met. After 90 minutes of fierce fighting, Japan scored two goals in the last 5 minutes, defeating Australia 2-0 and advancing to the final round of the World Cup in Qatar. After losing, Australia missed the top two and could only play in the play-offs.
In the 10th minute of the first half, Boyle cut in from the flank and fired a low shot that deflected slightly off the left upright. In the 19th minute, Nagatomo Yudo's low cross was deflected by an Australian defender and Matthew Ryan struggled to deflect the ball. Australia scored a goal in the 23rd minute, but the goal was blown away because Sainsbury fouled first.
In the 28th minute, Takushi Minamino swung inside the penalty area and fired a shot that deflected slightly off the far post. In the 32nd minute, Japan had a great chance to break the goal, Junya Ito crossed from the side, Takumi Minamino headed the ball into the goal, and the ball bounced off the crossbar. In the 38th minute, Nagatomo Yudo made the ball, Takumi Minamino grabbed the penalty area to shoot, and the ball hit the goal frame again and popped up. In the 45th minute, Gerustić's free-kick went straight to the goal and the Japanese goalkeeper defused the ball.
In the 48th minute of the game, Khrushtić fired a long-range shot from the edge of the game, the ball slightly off target. In the 61st minute Takuma Asano turned around and shot inside the penalty area, the ball was received by the opposing goalkeeper. In the 80th minute of the match, Hideshi Morita was passing the ball in the reverse triangle and Takumi Minamino's shot was blocked by the opposing defender. In the 88th minute of the match, Kaoru Mitsuru pushed a shot into the far corner to break the deadlock on the field. In injury time, Kaoru Sanji scored twice, and Japan sealed the win 2-0.
In the end, the 90-minute match was over, and the Japanese team defeated the Australian team 2-0 with a three-fold victory. After winning the match, the Japanese team reached 21 points, and they joined forces with Saudi Arabia, who scored 19 points, to advance to the final round of the World Cup in Qatar. The Australian team, which had 15 points, missed a great opportunity and could only play in the play-offs.