James Rodriguez missed training. It would be a huge boost for Japan if he's ruled out. Fingers crossed.
If Japan stick to pass and move I think they can cause problems, Columbia have some real physical players so that's going to be tough. You just don't know how the first game is going to go, anything can happen. A draw would be a great result but I just find it difficult to see Japan getting anything unless they manage rise to the occasion and play their best.
I still expect Colombia to win but this Colombia isn't as good as the 2014 one. If Inui and Kagawa start and they are in a good day again, who knows...
Japan should take notes from Iran on how to play in a high-tempo match. The Iran-Morocco match was really fast-paced and physical.
Iran are a real nightmare to play against, they give everything they have and will frustrate the opponent to the very end. Japan need some of that resilience in this match
When you look at 'thinkers' who sacked Halil in the Tokyo bars like Kitazawa who says 'Poland is higher in the FIFA ranking then Columbia but in reality Columbia is stronger'... I'm just sick of those people who never had seen the real world yet they know an answer for every question. I know it's their work but showing Rodriguez as the main star... it looks like showing Kagawa as the main star of WC... Compare him to Lewandowski. Earlier was Maya with his usual long face, dwelling in the world years ago... I hate this kind of people in general, who work behind someone's back but when it comes to declarations they're speechless. Like Yoshida is. He would make a great worker of big corporation, but he's not a great as man. It's depressing to even watch this circus that they created... It makes me sick. That's not how you should educate youngsters who still watch such programs on TV about real world. At best you can produce players like Ueda. Or Yoshida. It looks like the clock took us back to 2006...
Okazaki is unable to join training due to a calf injury he sustained against Paraguay and is in danger of being replaced in the squad by Asano.
It could be a disgrace but Okazaki or Asano probably both will never see the pitch so who cares. About Japan playing as Iran did against Morocco, that's impossible technically and strategically. It's a pain to be in the last group, days never end and the waiting is atrocious but there's a good chance that the game itself will be even more atrocious...
Reports from the camp indicating that Nishino is trying the following attacking combination as the first option: From right to left: Haraguchi - Kagawa - Inui. Osako.
Can I just ask a couple of things 1. First off why play Osako in attack when since leaving Kashima he hasnt shown anything of note 2. Why play Haraguchi as much as I love the kid, who is playing on loan for Fortuna and same since leaving Japan also hasnt shown much of the stardom that was promised 3. Final and most important Do you guys, same as me are asking yourself, what in the world has happened with JNT a team that 4 years ago was filled with promising young talents that you felt could make it big in this game if only things go right. To end up with this squad right now when you just hope they wont get trashed and shamed on the field. Is it just me who is sad about the situation about the prospects and when you look at the team as a whole there are a grand total of 2 players younger than 25. You see the younger generations playing with confidence believing in their one touch pass attacking and possesion football you saw previous WC the team which was the same but now... You just feel the cant outplay teams have no chance whatsoever against best team and it just simply makes you sad. Am I the only one?
Of course there are tons of ex-players making a lazy living by sucking up to the FA or providing hot takes, this happens everywhere. Soccer fans here in the US are subjected to it weekly. But there are also great professionals (ex-players and otherwise) who approach commentary and analysis with passion and professionalism. I've only seen a few clips, but I really like Kazuyuki Toda's ability to integrate analysis with opinion while articulating the key footballing takeaways crisply.
I know that I have mentioned it before, but I really felt that Misao should have been there ahead of either one of Yamaguchi or Oshima, even if not as a starter. He could have been a good option to use in some situations, especially given the fact that he also can play as a CB when needed. Kubo should also have been there as well, given his scoring ability.
Because he failed when he had a chance recently I'm not saying Osako is a good choice, just sayin' that it's also Muto's fault
No. Both Hasebe and Endo can play as CBs, SBs and CM/DMs. Oshima is better than Misao in the CM/DM position and Yamaguchi is more experienced. So, no way Misao could be picked up in this WC, but he has the talent and potential and I really admire him, hopefully if he keeps his form and improves himself as a player he will be a lock-in for the 2022 WC.
Same for Muto: he totally failed the friendlies and he was close to be left in Japan with those atrocious missed shoots against Ghana. Osako simply can hold the ball properly and it seems he can score more than Muto (disallowed goal against Paraguay). It's like to say that a cold is better than a fever but this is our current status. Since Okazaki is injured and (eventually) Asano can't add nothing the choice is between Osako and Honda as false9 like 8 frcking years ago. Imo, Inui+Kagawa+Haraguchi is the best we can setup while Osako is the lesser of two evils.
i really wanna know if kazuyuki toda is considering being a manager at club or intertnaional level. from what i’ve seen he’s got a good football brain and doesn’t talk bs. as for osako, sure he’s better at holding up the ball but it’s a completely different ball game playing against afc and colombian/polish cbs. it’s harsh to judge muto on 1-2 friendlies and say he hasn’t taken this chance. osako has had a million more opportunities to play for jnt and when was the last time (like many of his team mates) dominated a game.
you could put both of these guys on open goal and one would blast it into the stands in row z and the other wouldn’t know where to find his boots considering he’s hasn’t played since january.