Japan Goalkeeper Gonda Happy with His Performance against Iran

The Samurai Blue defeated Iran 3-0 in the 2019 AFC Asian Cup semi-final thanks to a brilliant save of Gonda in the first half.

One of Gonda's most telling contributions during the campaign was the close range stop he made to deny Iran's Sardar Azmoun in Al Ain on Monday.

With the score at 0-0, he denied the Iranian front man with an excellent reflex save using his left leg before half-time, with Japan going on to record an emphatic victory with three second half goals.

It was a performance which showed the capabilities of Hajime Moriyasu's side, but not one to completely satisfy its goalkeeper.

"I’m happy. Of course I’m happy we won, but personally I think there are a lot of things I need to reflect upon and so it’s one of those games where I feel happy," he reflected.

"All of us had the feeling that even though this was a big game we wanted to play our way. Of course, there was the opponent to contend with too, but first of all we came into the game with a strong feeling of doing everything we could. The best approach is to think that everything is dependent upon us," Gonda said.