Cuadrado was little bit of a prick as well, constantly looking for fouls despite being the one initiating contact against Haraguchi at times.
Yeh Okada was commenting on Japanese TV and praised him as well. It was fun, but a bit nerve-racking. Colombia barely attacked but looked like they could score whenever they did. Do you think Pékerman was a bit arrogant putting James on instead of putting in a defender and just playing for the draw? They threw Bacca on as well!
I hope Hasebe can maintain his form for the remaining matches. He is too important to the JNT. His fitness is a concern with his age, not sure if anyone in JNT can replace him if he cannot play the full 90 mins.
Hasebe was still arguing with the ref after Japan won, lol. I wonder if it was about the phantom foul called against him that gave Colombia a goal, or a more recent foul that wasn't called.
I agree. But yes it is frustrating to see his finishing abilities, could have scored 4 today. But on a day like this, lets forget about that.
Let's hope they keep saying that till the next match indeed till the end of the group stage! Our opponents underestimate us it's a big added value for our side!
This Polish defence without Kamil Glik is a joke. No wonder they lost 0-4 against Denmark in the qualifications. 0-2 for Senegal right now. Japan shall take notes from Senegal on how to be calm and capitalise on/convert their chances.
I don't like the whole sponsor thing either, but I think Honda is still decent enough to be a sub on this team. Poor giveaway, but if he was not there to take the corner Japan may not have won. Let's try to recognize both the bad and the good. BTW Kagawa was good earlier on but as Okada mentioned he was hardly getting on the ball anymore, so he was rightly subbed out.
Well we lost 4-1 last time and are arguably worse now, so I wouldn't have a problem with that. It also depends on how Japan and Colombia do in the matches to come. But red card was earned by Japan so it's all part of the game.
My thoughts FWIW. Great play by Osako in the build up to the penalty, using his physicality and beating Davinson Sanchez. Nishino made to look brilliant by keeping faith with him. You worry about having a poor finisher as your #9 but Osako has some outstanding qualities as he’s proven in the Bundesliga. Also, Kagawa, what a great story. For me this is a bit of redemption for him after WC 2014. The dangerous shot (that looked like it might go in) which forced the Carlos Sanchez handball. And Kagawa’s composure to cooly slot home down the middle should not be taken for granted. The foul on Hasebe was a disgraceful dive by Falcao. But rather than be demoralized by the injustice the team responded bravely with a much better second-half performance, which was rightly rewarded by the Osako goal, an impressive header that he managed to convert despite being surrounded by defenders. It’s a great win, a historic one for an Asian side, but of course the team should not get carried away. It’s time to focus on what needs to be improved (those things have been pointed out on this board) and do whatever we can to get a result in the Senegal game.
What an excellent result. I nearly won £500 too. I bet on kagawa to score first and Japan to win 3-1!. So close. Now if only Nishino can figure out how to put his earpiece in for the next press conference hellhbe fine haha. Fantastic game, what a result! Onto the next one.
Troussier was very good in the context of the time though. I was very happy with what I saw today. Inui provided a very dangerous threat from the left wing. Osako also played well on top of scoring the crucial goal; he een came back to block a dangerous shot to protect the lead too. Kagawa showed very good composure in the number 10 position and from the penalty spot. It was a shame that we got scored on a free kick that perhaps should have not been given, but kudos to Japan for keeping their focus and staying strong when teams of the past would have folded under pressure. Now that we have 3 points in the bank, let's keep playing one match at the time and remember that we have defeated African sides before in the World Cup when we had to.
Not to get carried away but if Japan do get through its either England or Belgium and that sucks, but yeah one match at a time, just want to see Japan play with freedom and confidence now and not be scared
Japan did very well in a low intensity game but it doesn't matter, the score management was really excellent. There's still room for improvement in terms of cold bloodedness, passing and efficiency but a big step towards qualifying has been done. Shibasaki and Osagod MVP.
We played against Belgium last year at their him and narrowly lost 0-1 due to a defensive lapse of concentration. I don't think that either Belgium or England will be more dangerous than Colombia.
The thing about Colombia is that every player has great individual skills, they can dribble in a way that will create chaos and unpredictability among their opponents. The same could not be said about Belgium, England and Poland, even if they have Lukaku, Keane or Lewandowski, a strict man-marking to any of these strikers can neutralize him and render the team's movements predictable and easy to defend (Tunisia did it in a good way yesterday, and they just left Harry Kane unmarked twice and it was what cost them the match),
I know Japan beat Colombia but I was a bit concerned with their performance in the first half and I believe they might struggle when they have to face a good side with 11 on the pitch. They couldn't control possession and looked dodgy at the back. However, they did a lot better in the second half but was that a result of tired legs or did Japan step up? We'll have to see what Japan turns up against Senegal.