Football Japan Minutecast

Neither Japan nor Holland may have been able to enjoy their scheduled training sessions at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban today due to heavy rain, but the mood in the former camp remains highly positive after Monday�fs 1-0 win over Cameroon left the Samurai Blue in an excellent position to qualify for the knockout stages of a World Cup for only the second time ever.

Victory tomorrow against the Dutch - who beat Denmark 2-0 in their opener - will ensure Japan�fs passage to the last 16 with a game to spare unless the Danes beat Cameroon later, while even defeat will still leave Takeshi Okada�fs men in charge of their own destiny going into the group�fs final fixtures next Thursday.

The manager could, therefore, be excused for viewing any points gained from Bert van Marwijk�fs men as a bonus and adopting a similarly defensive strategy as against Cameroon, but has instead vowed to attack 35-year-old Giovanni van Bronckhorst�fs perceived lack of pace at left-back in order to get behind the Holland defence.

�gWe are not a side that approaches any game looking for a draw,�h said Okada in a press conference on Thursday. �gFrom the start, we will be going there to win.�h

A series of similarly upbeat comments from the coaching staff and squad this week have sparked much speculation within the Japanese media about further changes in tactics. A mooted shift to 4-4-2 was quickly dismissed by Okada, but several news sources have predicted a return to the starting eleven for Shinji Okazaki - partly in light of the revelation that the Shimizu S-Pulse striker was among a trio of players to have struggled with the altitude in Bloemfontein and at the team�fs pre-tournament training camp in Switzerland.

Okazaki was brought on in a straight swap for Yoshito Okubo to play the final 22 minutes against Cameroon on the left wing. Should the 24-year-old be fielded from the start at sea level in Durban, either Okubo or Daisuke Matsui would appear likeliest to miss out, depending on whether or not Monday�fs hero Keisuke Honda continues as a lone forward or drops back to his more familiar position in attacking midfield.

Any rethink concerning the protective cushion of three at the base of midfield would be a surprise, considering how much more cohesive Japan have looked since abandoning their previous 4-2-3-1 system following a 2-0 defeat to South Korea in their final home warm-up last month. Anchorman Yuki Abe could, however, be rested tomorrow to avoid the risk of a second yellow card ahead of the crucial third match against Denmark, with Junichi Inamoto of Kawasaki Frontale favourite to deputise.

Right-back Atsuto Uchida and goalkeeper Seigo Narazaki are the other two players thought to have suffered at altitude, but while Uchida will resume a three-way battle for a starting berth with Yuichi Komano and the now fully fit Yasuyuki Konno, Eiji Kawashima looks to have cemented his place between the sticks following another assured performance against Cameroon.

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With a previously critical Japanese press having seemingly recovered their faith in Okada and his players, much of the media attention has now switched to avenging the only previous meeting between Japan and Holland just nine months ago. The friendly match in Enschede was a particularly chastening experience for Keisuke Honda, then of Eredivisie side VVV Venlo, who was introduced after a scoreless first half only to see goals from Robin van Persie, Wesley Sneijder, and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar give the Dutch a comfortable 3-0 win.

Eljero Elia of Hamburg marked his debut that day with two assists - also as a half-time substitute - and could be in line for a start tomorrow after coming off the bench to set up a goal for Dirk Kuijt against Denmark. Rafael van der Vaart had started at left wing on Monday in place of injured regular Arjen Robben, who will undergo a late fitness test on a hamstring strain to determine if he can play any part against Japan.

The match kicks off at 1.30pm local time (8.30pm Japanese time).


World Cup results
Group F
New Zealand 1-1 Slovakia

Group G
Ivory Coast 0-0 Portugal
Brazil 2-1 North Korea

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

Group A
South Africa 0-3 Uruguay
France 0-2 Mexico

Group B
Argentina 4-1 South Korea
Greece 2-1 Nigeria

Group D
Germany 0-1 Serbia