Thirteen nations will be vying for nine spots, with Islamic Republic of Iran, Japan and China PR having already confirmed their respective tickets to the Finals.
As we gear up for the Qualifiers, the-AFC.com takes a look back to when it all started in 2015 when the inaugural championship took place in Nilai, Malaysia with Iran crowned as the champions.
Group Stage
Based on participation at the 2009 and 2013 Asian Indoor and Martial Art Games, eight teams – Malaysia (hosts), China PR, Iran, Japan, Thailand, Uzbekistan, Vietnam and Hong Kong, China were separated into two groups.
image content
Malaysia set the early pace in Group A with a 9-2 win against Uzbekistan and followed that up with a 4-1 success against Hong Kong, China with Iran also dominant in picking up two wins against the same opponents, scoring 15 times and only conceding once.
That set up a winner-takes-all final group match between Malaysia and Iran with the latter coming out on top with a 4-2 victory marked by two second half goals from Fereshteh Karimi, with both sides advancing to the semi-finals.
image content
In Group B, Japan and Thailand began with wins over Vietnam and China PR respectively before they met on Matchday Two, with Chikage Kichibayashi’s brace powering the East Asian side to a 3-2 win.
China recovered to defeat Vietnam 3-2 but came unstuck against Japan in a 7-1 loss, opening up the chance for Thailand to seize second spot and a place in the last four after the Southeast Asian side won 2-1 against Vietnam in their final group match.
Semi-finals
image content
As the Group A winners, Iran took on Thailand in the first semi-final that saw the two teams evenly matched. Thailand provided stiff resistance before eventually conceding to a Zohreh Meisami goal with eight minutes left to play in the second half as the Central Asian side went through to the final.
image content
The other semi-final saw Group B winners Japan take on Malaysia in what proved to be a one-sided affair. Kichibayashi came to the fore again, netting a hat-trick to lead her team to a comfortable 8-1 win.
Final
Iran and Japan served up an enthralling final with Karimi notching her sixth goal of the tournament when she found the back of the net in the eighth minute to give Iran the lead.
Japan goalkeeper Ayaka Yamamoto was kept busy throughout the first half but things changed in the second period as Japan piled on the pressure and it was Iran’s Farzaneh Tavasoli who was the busier custodian.
image content
Saori Kato and Shiori Nakajima had their efforts superbly blocked by Tavasoli as Iran held on to claim the inaugural title with Karimi named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament.
Thailand finished third after a 4-1 win over Malaysia in the playoff.
source
کلاس یوس