DOHA: Japan reaffirmed its status as a heavyweight football nation with victory at the Asian Cup and coach Alberto Zaccheroni believes there are bigger and better things to come. Substitute Tadanari Lee scored an extra-time winner as his side edged Australia 1-0 to win a pulsating final Saturday and become the most successful team in the history of the competition. Lee sent a stunning left-foot volley past the diving Mark Schwarzer in the 109th minute to hand his country its fourth title at the continental showcase, a feat no-one else has achieved. The win, following its successes in 1992, 2000 and 2004, carried the added bonus of an automatic place at the 2013 Confederations Cup in Brazil — the traditional World Cup warm-up tournament. “It is a great victory. We have a really great team. They were united and won the title against such strong opponents,” said Zaccheroni, who singled out Lee for praise. “I knew he would do it. What is great about this team is that players who started on the bench could produce results on the pitch.” Zaccheroni, who was recruited after last year's World Cup and tasked with bettering its last-16 performance in Brazil in 2014, said it was a tribute to his players that they won after a gruelling semifinal. “We improved throughout the tournament. Our attack played with great speed and accuracy. That's a great feature of this team at the momnent. To get into the final, physically we were very exhausted,” he said.
