During the COVID-19 pandemic, it may be more challenging to maintain a healthy lifestyle, such as getting regular exercise, eating healthily, getting enough sleep and keeping in touch with friends and family. As the players from Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam reinforce – all these good habits help to keep our minds healthy, as well as our bodies.

Qatar were the guest team of this year’s Gold Cup and didn’t disappoint, scoring 12 goals in five matches. Ali was a big part of that with his quartet of goals.

Coming into the tournament without a win in over a year, and having been less than two minutes away from elimination in Friday’s gripping quarter-final against Great Britain, Tony Gustavsson’s side are not just still alive, but one win away from guaranteeing themselves a first ever Olympic football medal.

The tournament hosts are looking to win their first Olympic medal in the men’s football tournament since claiming bronze in Mexico City in 1968, with the nation standing between the Japanese and a place in Saturday’s final the one that has largely shaped Kubo’s career.

The 2022 FIFA World Cup hosts, who were competing on an invitational basis, had sealed their spot in the Knockouts as leaders of Group D, after registering convincing victories over Grenada and Honduras, before clinching a thrilling 3-2 win over El Salvador in the final eight.

Shaikh Salman said: “On behalf of the Asian football family, it is my pleasure and honour to extend to the Qatar Football Association my heartfelt congratulations on the excellent performance of the Qatari national team at the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

He added: “I would like to extend my praise and compliments to the whole team for their outstanding performance during the competition. This accomplishment has made Asia proud and served as a great opportunity to demonstrate the development of the game in our Continent.”

AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 top scorer Almoez Ali enjoyed a standout outing for the West Asians with the 24-year-old bagging the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup Top Scorer Award after snatching four goals in five appearances, including a memorable brace against El Salvador.

In Korea Republic, Ulsan Hyundai dropped more points while victory for Gamba Osaka in Japan helped them rise towards the mid-table positions in the J1 League as their position suddenly looks much safer.

Elsewhere, there was domestic action in Malaysia, Cambodia, Singapore, Brunei Darussalam and Macau, so join-the-AFC.com as we bring you up to date with the results from across East Asia and ASEAN.

Captain Maya Yoshida hit the decisive penalty to earn Japan a 4-2 shoot-out win over the OlyWhites after the two nations had shared a goalless 120 minutes in their quarter-final on Saturday.