The 2018 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup-winning forward says it’s up to Beleza to bring the title back to Japan and reinforce the country’s reputation as Asian’s women’s football powerhouse.

Claiming the title would provide Ueki with a positive end to a rollercoaster year, which has included the highs of a trophy-laden campaign for Beleza and a senior international debut for Japan, as well the heartbreak of missing the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup due to a last-minute injury.

The 17-time Nadeshiko League champions lead the pack after following an opening day draw with a crucial 2-0 win over Incheon Hyundai Steel Red Angels on Thursday, meaning their one-point lead over the tournament hosts will become an insurmountable four-point gap should they successfully see off the Australian side.

While a win against Victory will seal a maiden Continental title, a draw would significantly muddy the waters – with Beleza then relying on a favourable result in Saturday’s other match – while a defeat could see Masato Nagata’s side finish as low as third.

Depending on the result in the earlier match between Melbourne Victory and Nippon TV Beleza, the FIFA-AFC Pilot Tournament’s final match could either be a tournament decider or a dead rubber.

If Beleza win their match they will be crowned champions, but a Melbourne win or draw opens all sorts of possibilities for both the Red Angels and Jiangsu, who both remain in contention for a historic piece of silverware.

Maher opened the scoring in her side’s 1-1 draw with Chinese champions Jiangsu Suning to write her name into the history books and the promising midfielder sees a future where many more players will have the chance to follow in her footsteps.

The Australian club opened the scoring through an early Grace Maher header, before Jiangsu failed to find a winning goal despite creating several chances following Tang Jiali’s near-immediate equaliser.

The result leaves Victory on one point from two matches in the FIFA-AFC Pilot Tournament, while Jiangsu were forced to settle for a second draw in three days after sharing the spoils with Nippon TV Beleza on Matchday One.

Ueki’s header opened the scoring just after half time, before Kobayashi sealed the win in the dying seconds, helping Masato Nagata’s side to leapfrog the tournament hosts and put themselves 90 minutes away from being Asia’s first ever women’s club champions.

With four points from two matches, Beleza’s win means they’ll be able to seal the inaugural club crown with a win over Australia’s Melbourne Victory on Saturday, while the tournament hosts, who are a point behind, could go into their match with Jiangsu Suning with the title already lost.

Jiangsu’s impressive Malawian striker Tabitha Chawinga wrote her name into the history books with the tournament’s first goal in the seventh minute, but Beleza were level just three minutes later thanks to Mjna Tanaka before a second half arm-wrestle.

The result keeps both sides in title contention with two further matches to play in the competition.