Japan men's soccer team striker Ayase Ueda tasted the first title of his career on Sunday after 10-a-side Feyenoord won the Dutch Cup with a 1-0 win over NEC Nijmegen.
The 25-year-old came on as a substitute in the 75th minute of the final against NEC, which featured Japanese attackers Koki Ogawa and Kodai Sano.
At Rotterdam's De Kuip Stadium, Brazilian Igor Paixao scored the winning goal in the 59th minute, but the home side were one man down after winger Yankuba Minte picked up a second yellow card in the 72nd minute. Ta.
Feyenoord's Ayase Ueda (left) attacks during the Dutch Cup final against NEC Nijmegen in De Kuip, Rotterdam, Netherlands, on April 21, 2024. (Kyodo News)
Adding to the drama, the match was suspended twice due to fireworks in the stands, the second time due to a banner falling and creating a large amount of smoke inside the stadium.
Feyenoord's victory clinched their first Dutch Cup win since 2018, but NEC are yet to lift the trophy.
Ueda, who joined Feyenoord from Cercle Brugge in Belgium last summer, said, “This is my first title as a professional.I don't know how much I contributed, but it's a feeling I've never felt before.''
The former Kashima Antlers attacker was active right from the start of the match, but missed a chance to further give Rotterdam the lead.
“It was a chance to show my worth to the club. In those situations you need to score,” he said.
Feyenoord's Ayase Ueda (right) and Alireza Jahanbakhsh lift the Dutch Cup trophy after their 1-0 victory over NEC Nijmegen in De Kuip, Rotterdam, Netherlands, April 21, 2024 (Kyodo News)
Ogawa, who was called up to the Samurai Blue national team for last month's World Cup Asian Qualifiers, lamented that he was unable to win the title despite making a major contribution in NEC's cup matches.
“In games like this you have to score goals and make an impact to win the game,” said the 26-year-old.
Elsewhere in Europe, Takumi Minamino scored his eighth French Ligue 1 goal of the season in Monaco's 2-0 win away to Brest.
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