Football Japan Minutecast

Ahead of my trip to South Africa this afternoon, today�fs podcast is a rather more ad-libbed collection of thoughts recorded throughout what turned out to be an emotional last 16 game between Japan and Paraguay.

The Football Japan Minutecast will be back in a few days�f time with the first of a special series of episodes recorded in Johannesburg during the latter stages of the 2010 World Cup.


World Cup second round results
Holland 2-1 Slovakia
Brazil 3-0 Chile
Paraguay 0-0 Japan (after extra time; Paraguay win 5-3 on penalties)
Spain L-L Portugal

After securing their first ever wins and qualification from the group stage in a World Cup held away from home soil, the Japanese national team will now seek to go one better when they face Paraguay in Pretoria tomorrow afternoon for a place in the quarter-finals.

Confidence is soaring both inside and outside the camp after last Thursday�fs convincing 3-1 victory over Denmark sealed second spot in Group E. Takeshi Okada�fs �ebest four�f target - which became a major source for mockery among both pundits and supporters as Japan suffered a run of successive losses in the lead-up to the tournament - is suddenly being spoken about in serious terms again, but the manager himself has insisted that this next step will be the most significant.

�gThe hurdle of reaching the last eight has always been in the back of my mind since our opening game,�h said Okada yesterday. �gRight now, we are concentrating solely on beating Paraguay.�h

This is a hurdle that Japan have tried and failed to overcome once before, leading some domestic observers to recall the mistakes of the co-hosted World Cup in 2002. Then, Philippe Troussier�fs side surrendered meekly during their second round game in Miyagi against Turkey, who went on to beat Senegal in the last eight before losing narrowly to eventual champions Brazil in the semi-finals. Many still see this as a missed opportunity caused by premature satisfaction at simply qualifying from the group stage, and in this respect, popular opinion is beginning to accept that there may have been some logic behind Okada�fs lofty aspirations after all.

Both current captain Makoto Hasebe and predecessor Yuji Nakazawa have declared that the players do indeed have the hunger to keep on progressing this time around, while Okada and left-back Yuto Nagatomo have also spoken about their desire to fly the flag for Asia after South Korea�fs 2-1 defeat to Uruguay on Saturday left Japan as the competition�fs only remaining AFC representatives. History would not appear to be on the side of the Samurai Blue, however, as South American teams have won eight of the previous ten encounters between the two continents at World Cups, with solitary group stage draws for North Korea against Chile in 1966 and South Korea against Bolivia in 1994.

That said, victory for Paraguay at the Loftus Versfield Stadium would also represent their first ever victory in the knockout stages of a World Cup after falling at the last 16 on three previous occasions. Despite finishing top of a group containing reigning world champions Italy, La Albirroja looked out of sorts in their goalless draw with New Zealand last week and will have to do without defensive midfielder Victor Cáceres through suspension. Coach Gerardo Martino also has to decide whether or not to include defender Antolín Alcaraz and midfielder Jonathan Santana - both of whom returned to training on Saturday after missing the final group game through injury - as Paraguay look for a way of nullifying the Japanese danger at set pieces.

�gObviously from what we saw the other day,�h said Martino, �gwe need to try not to concede fouls near the area. When Japan find space they get men forward into attack and this is the most important issue to be careful about.�h

Japan look certain to keep with the same starting eleven for the fourth game in a row after Marcus Tulio Tanaka announced that he has recovered from a knock picked up against Denmark. The Nagoya Grampus stopper has backed the likes of Keisuke Honda to maintain the side�fs prowess at free-kicks, stating �gEvery goal is so much more precious now in this knockout stage and it is important we try to get our noses in front first. One thing we will have to try and do is vary our set-pieces to surprise the Paraguayans.�h

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In six previous games between the two countries, Paraguay hold the upper hand with two victories to Japan�fs one - including a 4-0 romp in their only competitive meeting at the 1999 Copa America - but Japan are unbeaten in three friendlies played so far this century. The second round match kicks off in Pretoria at 4pm local time (11pm Japanese time), with the winners set to play either Spain or Portugal in the last eight.


World Cup results
Group G
North Korea 0-3 Ivory Coast
Portugal 0-0 Brazil

Group H
Switzerland 0-0 Honduras
Chile 1-2 Spain

Second round
Uruguay 2-1 South Korea
United States 1-2 Ghana (after extra time)
Germany 4-1 England
Argentina 3-1 Mexico
Holland L-L Slovakia
Brazil L-L Chile

Japan put in perhaps their finest ever performance - and certainly one of the most impressive by any team in South Africa thus far - to defeat Denmark 3-1 in Rustenburg last night and seal qualification to the knockout stages of the World Cup for the first time ever on foreign soil.

Two superb free kicks in the first half from Keisuke Honda and Yasuhito Endo gave Takeshi Okada�fs side a lead they never looked like surrendering, even after a late Danish rally had seen Jon Dahl Tomasson pull a single goal back with nine minutes remaining. Substitute forward Shinji Okazaki added a third in the dying moments of the game to guarantee the win, sparking scenes of jubilation both on the substitutes�f bench and in bars, homes, and streets throughout Japan shortly after 5am local time.

Unsurprisingly, Okada continued with the same eleven that had beaten Cameroon in their opening Group E game before losing narrowly to Holland five days previously, but the manager did raise a few eyebrows by pushing Makoto Hasebe forward to support the attack in what therefore became a 4-2-3-1 formation. Denmark coach Morten Olsen made two changes to his side, restoring Thomas Kahlenberg to the midfield in place of Jesper Grønkjær, while Per Krøldrup deputised for the suspended Simon Kjær in central defence.

The return to the formation that had worked in Asian qualification but rarely since handed the early initiative to Denmark - who needed a win to seal their place in the last 16 - as left-back Simon Poulsen found space to surge forward and combine with Tomasson in attacking positions. Okada quickly instructed Hasebe to step back and restore the 4-1-2-2-1 system of the previous two matches, but if observers feared this signalled an intention to play for the draw that would secure Japan�fs progression, their worries were allayed when Daisuke Matsui and Hasebe both went close to scoring within a matter of seconds.

The opening goal then duly arrived on 17 minutes. Honda lined up a free-kick fully 30 yards from goal near the right-hand touchline, before firing a wickedly powerful shot with very little spin that Denmark goalkeeper Thomas Sørensen struggled to read before the ball eventually flew in past his outstretched right hand. With Japan now firmly in the ascendancy, it took only until the half-hour mark for Endo to double the lead from another set piece, this time with more conventional right-footed curl to take the ball around the wall from just outside the penalty area.

Olsen immediately reacted by sending on midfielder Jakob Poulsen for the disappointing Martin Jørgensen, but Japan continued to surge forwards and could have added a bizarre third shortly after the interval when Endo�fs looping free-kick was spilled onto the post by Sørensen. Denmark finally found some momentum thereafter when Eiji Kawashima saved at the feet of Tomasson, before substitute Søren Larsen hit the crossbar with a cracking volley from 20 yards. The breakthrough eventually came when Hasebe was harshly penalised for a push on Daniel Agger inside the Japanese penalty area, though Tomasson needed two attempts to score after his weak spot kick was parried back to him by Kawashima.

Japan remained entirely unfazed, and put the icing on the cake of their finest ever achievement on 87 minutes when Honda danced past Dennis Rommedahl, before drawing Sørensen and squaring for Okazaki to slot home the easiest of finishes.

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The victory was, once again, a triumph for a manager who had endured fierce criticism in the months leading to the tournament for his lack of results and ideas in Japan�fs warm-up matches. Okada admitted after the game that his tactical switch after just ten minutes had been necessary to restore stability, and praised his players for �gfighting not as individuals but together, and proving conclusively that football is above all a team sport�h.

Perhaps the most revealing comments as regards Japan�fs upturn in fortunes came from man-of-the-match Honda. �gI�fm pleased,�h said the CSKA Moscow midfielder, �gbut then not as much as I thought I would be. We�fre still a long way from fulfilling our goals in this competition, and we need to show that nothing is impossible in the next game as well now. Until then, we can�ft be satisfied�h.

Japan will now take on Group F winners Paraguay in their second round match in Pretoria next Tuesday afternoon, after Gerardo Martino�fs side secured qualification with a goalless draw against New Zealand. Holland sealed top spot in Group E thanks to a 2-1 victory over already-eliminated Cameroon, and will face Slovakia in the last 16 after their shock 3-2 win to knock out defending champions Italy.


World Cup results
Group D
Ghana 0-1 Germany
Australia 2-1 Serbia
(Germany win group, Ghana qualify in second)

Group F
Slovakia 3-2 Italy
Paraguay 0-0 New Zealand
(Paraguay win group, Slovakia qualify in second)

Group E
Denmark 1-3 Japan
Cameroon 1-2 Holland
(Holland win group, JAPAN qualify in second)

Group G
North Korea L-L Ivory Coast
Portugal L-L Brazil

Group H
Switzerland L-L Honduras
Chile L-L Spain