Portugal edged Japan 2-1 on penalties after the match finished 3-3 after extra time to advance to the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Paraguay 2019 final, where they will face Italy.
All of Portugal’s goals came from brothers Be and Leo Martins, with the former scoring a decisive double in the third period.
The Portuguese took an early lead through Leo Martins but Japan fought their way back into the match and took a 2-1 lead thanks to goals from Ozu Moreira and Shusei Yamauchi.
Takuya Akaguma scored with less than a minute on the clock to send the game to extra time, and that’s when the torrential rain that we saw in the first semi-final returned.
Amid an almighty downpour, Portugal won in the penalty shoot-out thanks to goals from Madjer and Coimbra to book a place in the final, where they will look to repeat their 2015 exploits when they won the World Cup on home soil.
Japan 3-3 (1-2 PSO) Portugal (Paraguay 2019 semi-final)
This is not a victory of the Martins brother, but of Portugal. Without the trust of the team, none of us could accomplish anything. That is our virtue: we share responsibilities and deliver.
Up next
Final - 1 December
[[flag-ita-xs]] Italy - Portugal [[flag-por-xs]] (18:00 local time)
Play-off for third place - 1 December
[[flag-rus-xs]] Russia - Japan [[flag-jpn-xs]] (16:15 local time)