Japan's Under-21 men's soccer team defeated Nepal 1-0 on Tuesday in Hajime Moriyasu's first match since being handed the extra responsibility of managing the senior Samurai Blue side last month.

Midfielder Kaoru Mitoma, of University of Tsukuba, scored the game's only goal in the seventh minute, but the team struggled to break down Nepal's stubborn defense.

With the Asian Games in Indonesia set to officially open Saturday, Japan still made a good head start to the quadrennial multisport event under Moriyasu, who was appointed last October to lead the country's soccer squad for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.