Outright Odds: three hundred/one
Group F Winners: 16/1
Japan are a tricky workforce to predict. Previous yr they conquer European champions Greece and earned a reputable draw with Brazil in previous years Confederations Cup but their qualifying marketing campaign was below convincing.
They shed just the moment in twelve qualifying matches, away at Iran, and topped the group General, Nevertheless they only managed to score much more than two targets in opposition to a severely depleted Indian facet and needed last minute wins from Oman and Korea DPR.
These kinds of feebleness in qualification noticed the general public call for supervisor Zicos head but The actual fact they certified to the tournament will preserve the Brazilian soccer legends work In the intervening time. Japan achieved the next round four several years in the past but they can do well to succeed in that stage this time around.
The 2002 marketing campaign observed Japan defeat a dismal Russia in advance of narrowly dropping out to Turkey in the next round. Legend has it that then-coach Phillipe Troussier selected striker Akinori Nishizawa, who experienced not played while in the tournament, forward of normal strikers Takayuki Suzuki and Atushi Yanagisawa mainly because it was his birthday. Undoubtedly Zico wouldnt make this type of error?
A UK-dependent midfield trio of Hidetoshi Nakata (Bolton Wanderers), Shunsuke Nakamura (Celtic), Junichi Inamoto (West Bromwich Albion) and if match, Shinji Ono of Feyenoord provides Japan their greatest prospect of success its the rest of the crew which lacks genuine Worldwide course.
The common strike pairing of Naohiro Takahara and Yanagisawa never get standard club soccer with Hamburg and Messina when the rest of the facet is built up of residents from the vastly enhancing J-League. Only four with the 23 players in final decades Confederations Cup squad have been based mostly overseas.
The centre fifty percent-pairing of Gamba Osakas Tsuneyasu Miyamoto and Yokohamas Yuji Nakazawa were being stable in the course of a qualification marketing campaign which 안전놀이터 conceded just five objectives but Brazil, Croatia and Australia will supply a Considerably sterner examination. Portsmouth flop Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi, built the scapegoat just after Pompey shed four-1 at your house to Leyton Orient on his debut, has featured around 80 occasions in purpose for his place.
Japan might be victims of their own individual latest success and expectation might be good at this a long time finals. Even though there is an abundance of expertise in midfield, the group in general will not be up to emulating their group topping exploits of 4 many years in the past and they are unlikely to figure within the knockout stages.
Advised Guess
An unconvincing qualification campaign and a lack of objectives from the two strikers implies Japan cannot be backed to qualify within the team. The truth is, they may be propping up the rest by the point the 3 1st round matches are completed and backing towards them could be a better expenditure than supporting them.
Croatia to conquer Japan @ four/five