Germany and Spain draw, which means Japan would have already secured a spot in the Round of 16 if they didn't blow their chance. Why did the coach seem to think the Spain match was more important than this Costa Rica match?
Because he underestimated Costa Rica, after they got destroyed by Spain. That 7-0 made everyone think they aren't a serious team. Add to this his mind, which is better suited to thinking how to overachieve as an underdog, rather than dominate as the odds-on favorite and the composition of the Japanese team- lack of long range shooters or very tall strikers, and that result isn't so shocking.
https://japantoday.com/category/fif...ends-decision-making-after-limp-japan-showing Moriyasu defends decision making.
This is difficult since most japanese managers can't even speak english. So the best they can do is to become assistants of foreign managers who come to Japan and learn from them. Actually right now there are many really promising japanese managers who were former players and assistants of foreign managers, such as Rikizo Matsuhashi (assistant of both Postecoglou and Albert Puig), Hideo Oshima (assistant of both Postecoglou and Kevin Muscat), Susumu Watanabe (assistant of Peter Cklamovski), Tadaaki Hirakawa (assistant of Ricardo Rodriguez), and many others.
No matter what, knowing the Moriyasu game plan, the Spain game is going to be a tough watch, Spain will dominate possession and Japan will get the ball and fail to string any passes together. We can only hope for a miracle from Mitoma or Asano again (never thought I'd say that)
Didn't it happen last World Cup when Japan benched a lot of their starters against Poland, and it almost cost them a spot in the last 16?
"The result was a shame but it does not mean what we have done was wrong," Moriyasu said in the wake of Japan's lifeless performance at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan. "For the Germany game and today, we had high intensity...and for the next match against Spain it will be (the same). So we just need to increase the odds for Japan and that is how I decided the tactics." Oh, really!
I don't mind JNT losing if they played like Korea did in their match that just ended now. Still feeling bitter of yesterday's loss.
For about 10 minutes of the 2. half, there was high intensity. For Moriyasu's sake, we better copy the 2. half against Germany again, but without those dreadful first halves making a comeback.
I thought about this to enjoy the waiting and the match: by 2026 WC will have 48 teams and only 2 match per team in group stage than in the KO stage we will have from round of 32 to the final. Japan actually scored 3 points and pass the group stage face Spain in the Round32 that means: victory is the only option to go ahead. It would be a great opponent as the first KO stage match and none will regret if we lose.
Yeah it was very worse, but Costa Ricas defense is like Iron. The 7-0 was a anomaly. Costa Rica cincedes 8 goals in 15 qualify Matches beneath a 2-0 ein against the USA and 1-0 against Canada only 3 points behind USA, Canada and Mexico. Costa Rica is one hell of a team when it comes to defense and game destroing. So of course Japan has to win but even Mexico, USA and Canada failed. So it can happen.
There is two huge differences: 1. Zac Japan came to the field to crush Greece and tried it in all the possible ways while Moriyasu choose to accept that CR parked the bus doing nothing, if not when too late, to crush it. Zac Japan never accepted to draw with Greece while Moriyasu thought that it was enough to draw with CR and in the end he was punished by karma. 2. In 2014 we need to win against Colombia, there were no possibility to advance with a draw while as things stand, if CR will keep parking the bus in front of germans, then we can make it even with a draw, even with a 0 - 0. I know that will be not the case but there's this little chance and we can't ignore it especially if we manage to equalize and germans will panic and miss their chance to score or fail a penalty or concede a counter that can lead to a goal. Let's say that Zac Japan didn't deserve to draw with Greece and had 10% chance to qualify for the KO stage while Moriyasu deserved to draw (in this case lose) but has a 15% cheance to qualify.
Reports say Endo will miss the Spain game. Sakai is also doubtful. I've seen Japan at every World Cup since 98' but I've never seen so many injuries in the team.
Hope its not true. Dont find anything about it. Sakai himself said, he is fit. Lets hope for the best. Yeah ridicioulos, so many small injurings.
Even a draw would put Japan in a much better position than now. Not sure of what Moriyasu was thinking. Anyway, Spain would most probably want to get Group 1st to avoid Croatia. Will be very difficult for JPN to advance. If Germany draws against CR and Japan also draws then JPN would advance by Goal Difference unless they lose 7-0 as well. However, if either wins then JPN will only be able to advance if they win which will be very difficult considering Spain's strengths. Since Germany have a chance to advance if they win, most probably they will go all out.
Itakura and Yoshida must avoid any stupid mistake and shut down Morata: he is an emotive player if they rule him agitated especially with well planned offside he will freak out and he will be done for. Then Tomi and Yuto must simply do their job: I'm confident they will be fine with spaniards on the wings, they both nullified Momo Salah in far and recent past so they have the countermeasures to stop cross supplying. Morita and probably Tanaka will have the hardest job to do: rule the mf both defensively and offensively. They need to step up as this were the most important game of their football life. Kamada and Kubo had the most disappointed performances till now. I dunno why they can't play as they did with their clubs, players like them is intended to support and be an added value to the NT not the contrary. It's now or never, do something worth your names please. Wingers and forwards: with 6 subs Moriyasu must try all the things possible to score. Even a Machino will not mind me till he add some unpredictability to the attack. I bet he will start with Maeda and then Asano as against Germany, let's hope that 1 if them overperform again and score (not in offside).
Kamada is an attacking midfielder. When the opposing team control possession, it's hard for him to do much. Kubo was poor because Germans controlled possession and had physical strength to prevent him from doing anything.
I think it's a little precipitated to give up on JNT, it is still very inexperienced in world cups so it has too much to evolve, when players such as Sota Kawasaki, Kuryu Matsuki, Kaishu Sano, Daiki Matsuoka, Makoto Mitsuta, Hayato Tanaka, Takuya Ogiwara, Mao Hosoya, Shinya Nakano, Kosei Tani and Shuto Machino go to Europe, the JNT will have a boom in quality, and there are also many other really good players already playing in Europe that will probably be part of the next cycle, such as Sugawara, Hayao Kawabe, Ayumu Seko, Reo Hatate, Satoshi Tanaka, Keito Nakamura, Taichi Hara, Kosuke Nakamura and Takuhiro Nakai. So by the next WC the JNT will have more experience and better players, we just need a better manager by then.
2014 was supposed to be the golden generation iirc lol. Anyway, Uchida or Okazaki has mentioned that Japan lacks a star player. As of now only Tomiyasu is starting at a top club currently. Even then, he is not a sure guaranteed starter when he is not injured. Kubo is not performing to his expected potential.
Frankfurt can considered as something like a top club. And Kamada is a top player, maybe the most in form middlefieldplayer in Europe for now. And Kamada has the quality to play against Ball possesion dominant teams and against park the bus teams. Thats the great thing on him. Almost every game for Frankfurt this year was world class but Japans or better Moriyasus tactics are not fit. Japan played a good second half against Germany and a solid second half against Costa Rica appart from the goal. But you don't see a clear game plan. The JNT looks like headless chickens from time to time in these games. And thats a thing you have to credit to Moriyasu. He is clueless. Japan only won vs Germany cause of their big individuel quality of the players not cause of Moriyasus tactica at all. Sure it works great against Germany and like I am said overall Moriyasu is sucessfull on paper but he destroy anything with his those dumb plans against Costa Rica or Qatar in the Asia Cup Finals or Olympic Place 3 Game vs Mexico cause he has no Plan B or C and has a cruell Player pick mind. By they way you don't need absolutely top class players in mind of super stars. Good players, at good Clubs in top leagues like now is more then enough to be sucessfull, but you need a good Team chemistry.
Well the talk sounded different a short while if i remeber correctly. This was the world cup to shine.
I'd disagree slightly. There was a game plan against Germany, and when that didn't work, Moriyasu reacted brilliantly. Broke the German press that strangled us, and then piled on the attacking threat to break the tired Germans. Against Costa Rica, yes. He had no clue what to do against a deep block. Put up a tall-ish striker, but didn't order long passes to him to bypass the first line of the block. No long shots, either. Spain will be similar to Germany, and I hope Moriyasu will be...in his natural environment.