Ilidio Vale hailed his Qatar players’ tenacity and spirit after the AFC U-23 Asian Cup hosts exited the tournament on Thursday with a 4-2 extra-time defeat against former champions Japan at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium.Qatar gave the 2016 winners a scare despite playing much of the game with 10 men following goalkeeper Yousef Abdullah’s 41st minute sending off, only succumbing to extra-time goals from Mao Hosoya and Kotaro Uchida.“Everybody knows that when you play against Japan when they have 11 players and you have 11 players it’s already very difficult, so imagine that you have to play with 10 players on your team against 11 very experienced Japanese players,” said the Portuguese coach.“I’d like to congratulate the Qatar players, they were fighters. They showed they were fighters in all the games, they did not surrender despite the fact we only played with 10 players today. The Qatari players have a very promising future. They have their own persona, their own character and their own ambition and I think they honoured their country. They honoured the maroon jersey today.”The Japanese had made a quick start with Fuki Yamada putting Go Oiwa’s side in front with barely a minute on the clock but Ahmed al-Rawi’s 24th minute header pulled Qatar level.Abdullah was sent off with four minutes remaining in the first half when he stuck his studs into the thigh of Hosoya but the home side were undeterred, going ahead when Jassem Gaber nodded a free kick past Leo Kokubo.After relentless pressure Oiwa’s side levelled through Seiji Kimura’s 67th minute header and, while Japan were unable to break through before the completion of the 90 minutes, Hosoya’s 101st minute strike and a fourth from Uchida 11 minutes later sealed Qatar’s fate.“It was the red card that made all the difference, it affected us organisationally speaking,” said Vale.“We will not be able to participate in the Paris Olympics, the dream of those young players will not come true. They were dreaming to be in the Olympics. They have worked really hard in the time we were together but we have benefited a lot from all these efforts. The national team now has some mature players mentally and physically because they can compete at the highest levels.“I’m going through a lot of emotions and it is the same for the players in the dressing room. We feel the pain of not achieving the dreams of our fans of going as far as possible in this tournament. The players have proved to be real men in these games. Of course, such competitions are beneficial because we have discovered players who have matured mentally and physically and have proven what they’re made of by playing against the best Asian players and teams.”