There is a theory that they are favored in terms of refereeing decisions on the pitch (Of course, nothing is conclusive at this point of time), well I just came across it and realized that he is a very well-respectable investigative journalist thus just shared it as it is relating to the World Cup tournament itself.
Nothing against Molina and his work but it has nothing to do with Japan. If anything, I can't recall a single instance since the 1998 World Cup where Japan had a bad referee in their games.
Bellingham is good but he is not a turning point as big as GK brainfart + top FW injured. Let Pickford brainfart and make Norway take the lead and then sent off Harry Kane injured and tell me who will win. Nothing remarkable but as I said tons of time: Netherlands won the 2nd group match in 2010 with an irregular goal and this coast Japan the Final16 against Paraguay instead of weaker Slovakia. And there's another in 2018: again 2nd group match vs Senegal. Japan (supposed to lose vs Prime Manè + Prime Koulibaly etc) draw but Senegal should have played in 10 men since 59' when Niang was yellowcarded. Nowdays would be VARed and turned from yellow to red. The same Niang assisted Senegal's 2nd goal. At the end JNT passed thanks to Fairplay (karma) but what if it was not?
Actually I think Bellingham is a World-Class player, maybe just as good as Haaland. Real Madrid was just in a mess the past season, hope Mourinho can revamp the team inside out. Yep I know, as I mentioned I just shared it as a tidbit because it is related to WC 2026.
Considering that the transfer deal for Ederson totally collapsed because of failed medicals, a club like United should be on the move for someone like Kaishu Sano as the club's primary task is to beef up the number 6 position. If things have stalled between Liverpool and Mainz, United should be able to raise the bid by a good margin.
I would say without any doubt but who knows. After sources Parma said it could go very quickly cause Paris want to hurry the deal.
The Japan Football Association (JFA) has decided to focus entirely on U-21 national team coach Go Oiwa as the successor to current senior team manager Hajime Moriyasu. Oiwa is expected to officially take charge in March 2027, following a short-term contr… https://t.co/Ru0cty59ms pic.twitter.com/WxCppRASeP— Japan Daily (@Japandailydotjp) July 15, 2026 Go Oiwa seems to be the successor designated by JFA after Asian Cup 2027. Probably a duo-role alongside with focusing on the Olympics 2028. Can foresee him transitioning some of the players from AFC U-23 to the WC Squad after the Olympics 2028. There may be a chance that the starting CB duo for 2030 WC be Rion Ichihara - Kazunari Kita too, since it is his favorite pairing when managing them in the Youth tournaments.
Good points. Let's also not forget this time against Brazil after Japan finally broke out of defense and had that counter, Nakamura's cross was cleared by Danilo who even celebrated the clearance. But ref awarded a goal kick and Brazil tied it shortly after that. Under the dumb new rules VAR can reverse a corner awarded but not give one that wasn't awarded.
So many wrongs decisions this wc. So many corners not given. And no one gives a fkc. I really liked this wc. But same time losed hope in the game for obvious reasons.
Yeah way better I think. One of them loses his starting spot soon after bad performances and the other one was criticized heavily for also be not good enough. I think they want Suzuki as Nr.1 but who knows. Let's see.
Bah... After thinking it over had come to the conclusion that a foreign coach would have been 100 times better. For the simple reason that we risk another Moriyasu situation. Where the relentless positivity of Japanese TV, general non-specialized media makes a Japanese untouchable. If Moriyasu had not been Japanese he wouldn't have gotten a new 4 year contract after the WC 22. At most an extension until the Asian Cup (which then turned out to be way later than originally planned) And most definitely would not have gotten another 6 months to waste now. But after 22, his only achievement in 8 years, it's become impossible to criticize Moriyasu on mainstream TV, he's become a hero, with an uncritical hero's welcome back after the World Cup now. For failing twice in the Asian Cup, failing in the Tokyo Olympics, performing according to the draw, nothing more, possibly something less in this WC. A foreigner is much easier to criticize and let go than a Japanese for the Japanese...
England doing exactly what Japan did, go 1-0 then all out defense. They lose the same way, at this level you can't hold out against these top teams, go for the second goal!
Yup, it's almost a repeat of Japan's match against Brazil. Hopefully, the folks at JFA and the Japanese coaches learn from this. And yeah, like someone mentioned in another subforum, football is not a fair game, but it rarely rewards cowardice.
Exactly, look what Spain did against France after getting up 1-0, they still dominated them and didn't just defend deep. Japan should take a leaf out of Spains book.
Japan have the technical players though, that's what makes it more frustrating. I can understand somewhat with England because all they do is play the longball.
English media and pundits are furious about what England did and Japan did exactly the same thing, it's like deja vu. Lots of lessons learned in this world cup.
Frankly speaking, it is always difficult to say before the match ended. Egypt continued to attack after being 2 goals up and almost scored a third, then they conceded 3 goals. To do what Spain did required midfielders to have a great understanding with each other. Not even Portugal can replicate with Joao Neves and Vitinha in their system.