Olympics-Syria flop boosts Japan's London hopes

Japan's under-23 side were the toast of the sports pages on Thursday after wrestling back control of their own destiny in the battle to qualify for the London Olympics.

A 4-0 away thrashing of Malaysia had put the pressure on Group C leaders Syria, who were then beaten 2-1 in Bahrain in a Middle East clash later on Wednesday.

"We showed the heart to keep looking to score until the end," said Japan coach Takashi Sekizuka after Hiroki Sakai, Yuya Osako, Genki Haraguchi and Manabu Saito found the net in steamy Kuala Lumpur.

"We will see the value of those four goals in the last match, when we return to Tokyo to play Bahrain (on March 14). I am so proud of the energy they showed in this heat."

Syria had topped the group on goals scored after a surprise 2-1 win over Japan earlier this month but after conceding a late goal in Manama, the momentum has swung back to Japan.

Japan, bidding to qualify for a fifth successive Olympic tournament, have 12 points from five games, three points clear of Syria, and just need a draw against Bahrain to book their ticket to London.

Bahrain also have nine points but would need a miracle to finish top and steal the only automatic qualifying spot with a goal difference in the minus column.

Only the three group winners qualify automatically from Asia, the runners-up heading to a playoff in late March.

The winners of that face Senegal in a one-off match in Coventry, England on April 23.

Meanwhile, Japan's fierce rivals South Korea qualified for the Olympics for the seventh time in a row after a 3-0 win away at Oman in Group A. Double-click on the newslinks: for more Olympic stories