The 10 rounds of the World Preliminary Round of 12 in The Asian Zone are finally over. The Japanese team finally ranked second in the group with 7 wins, 1 draw and 2 losses accumulating 22 points, and qualified steadily.
This issue is the fourteenth issue of "Starting Japanese Football", and we continue to focus on Japan. How did the Japanese team rush from the bottom of the group to the second place and qualify in the first round?
Note: The column "Starting from the Bottom of Japanese Football" will start from the Meiji era of Japan more than 150 years ago, trace back to the roots of Japanese football, and dig deep into the development process of Japanese football in the past 150 years. Each issue involves campus football, professional paths, naturalization, etc., and I believe it can give you different inspirations for those who love football.
01
The Japanese team is not working?
The entire World Preliminary Tournament for the Japanese team seemed to be riding a roller coaster. In the first three rounds of last year's World Cup, japan was upset one after another: in the first round, they lost 0-1 at home to Oman, and in the third round, they lost 0-1 to Saudi Arabia, and only won 1 goal against the national football team in the second round. After 3 rounds, Japan and the national football team, Oman three teams are all accumulating 3 points, it seems that the qualifying situation is not optimistic.
Standings after the first three rounds
In the first round against Oman, perhaps the teammates were tired, the overall tactical coordination has not yet met expectations, coupled with Oman's targeted defensive counterattack deployment, the Japanese team lost 0-1 at their home stadium!
In the second round against the Chinese team, Japan did not play well, but it was somewhat restrained. In the case of the full defense of the national football team, the Japanese team only scored 1 goal, and even after the national football team naturalized on the debut, the Japanese team's defense was also threatened.
In the third round of the match with Saudi Arabia, the two teams played a confrontation, but the Japanese front line was not strong, coupled with saudi arabia's wolf-like midfield stranglehold, the Japanese team once again suffered a defeat, 0-1 regret!
After only 3 points in the 3 rounds, he once fell to the bottom. At this time, the Japanese fans, who have always been calm, can't sit still and ask Mori to take a lesson, so that the Japanese team may really miss the World Cup.
But then, the Japanese team taught the fans around the world a lesson in looking down on them...
02
Win the battle of life and death,
1 round early
In the fourth round, facing a key battle against Australia, the Japanese team absolutely cannot afford to lose. If they lose again, they can only get 3 points in four rounds, while Australia is in full swing and the Japanese team needs a victory.
On October 12, 2021, before it was too late to adjust after losing to Saudi Arabia, the Japanese team was about to face Australia. At its home stadium, Saitama Stadium, the Japanese team played this game very hard. Japan was equalised by Australia in the second half with the goal in front! Seeing that the game was almost over, in the 87th minute, Takuma Asano made a contribution, his small angle shot from the left side caused the Australian defender to swing himself, with this goal, the Japanese team beat Australia 2-1 and successfully scored 3 points!
It is no exaggeration to say that this match was a turning point for the Japanese team in the round of 12, and since then, the Japanese team can be said to take off directly.
In the two matches in November, first a small 1-0 victory over Vietnam, and then a 1-0 away revenge against Oman, it won three consecutive wins.
In the two games of the January 2022 cycle, against China and Saudi Arabia, Japan won the same 2-0 score, and the revenge against Saudi Arabia was also completed. At this time, the five consecutive wins have arrived, and the World Cup in Qatar is getting closer and closer.
The battle of life and death came on 24 March, away to Australia. You can imagine how fierce the match will be, Japan will have to keep the top 2 position, and Australia will have to beat Japan, because no one wants to be the third in the group and the South American team to qualify for the World Cup.
Similar to the first leg of the two teams, both sides were only divided at the last minute! The Japanese team did not break the deadlock until the 87th minute by Kaoru Mitsuru, and in the 90th minute, he added to the icing on the cake, helping the Japanese team to beat Australia 2-0, winning the life-and-death battle, and also announcing that the Japanese team broke into the Qatar World Cup in the first round!
The final round against Vietnam was only a cutscene, although it failed to win and was forced to draw 1-1 by Vietnam, but it did not affect the pace of the Japanese team.
03
Everybody wants the forest,
So everybody went to plant trees
The teams in the Asian region that finally qualify for the World Cup, in addition to the host Qatar, are the traditional final four of Japan, South Korea, Iran and Saudi Arabia. At first glance, they are all old faces, and the pattern of the Asian top four seems to be difficult for other teams to shake in the short term.
We all know that Japanese football can not achieve today's results overnight, from 50 years ago or even further, Japanese football began their reform, until the first world cup in 1998, they have never missed the World Cup.
It's not a question of whether to learn Europe or South America, it's a question of whether a path can go on forever. As long as you follow the laws of football and work in the right direction, the results will give you the rewards you deserve.
"Everybody wants a forest, so everybody goes to plant trees." This is the secret weapon of Japanese football's success, and this secret weapon has always been there.
Develop leagues and youth training from top to bottom, from the Football Association to local clubs, youth training to schools, and then specifically to everyone. When everyone is planting trees, will you still worry about building a forest?
(To be continued)...