Japan aims for the audacious
Source: Agencies |
June 26, 2010, Saturday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
TEAM spirit and a growing belief in its own exceptional talents have not only taken Japan into the last 16, but also rekindled a pre-finals dream of reaching the semifinals.
Japan clinched its place in the second round for the first time on foreign soil by beating Denmark 3-1 in stylish fashion on Thursday, producing a brand of fast, slick and technical attacking football that delighted its fans and neutrals.
Two well-struck goals from free-kicks by Keisuke Honda, after 17 minutes, and Yasuhito Endo, on the half-hour, put it in command before a spirited Denmark revival saw it pull one back through Jon Dahl Tomasson after 81 minutes.
Courageous in defence, slick and inventive in attack, Japan then dazzled again and put the contest beyond doubt with a third goal, beautifully created by Honda for substitute Shinji Okazaki with three minutes remaining.
Japan now faces Paraguay in Pretoria on Tuesday.
Afterwards, it made it clear it believes that will not be the end of its South African adventure and it can go much closer to realizing coach Takeshi Okada's audacious pre-tournament challenge.
"I did talk of that aim (semifinals) before we came to the tournament, but it was mostly a target I set to motivate our team," he said. "It has mostly served its purpose now. It was vital for everyone to train with the highest possible motivation and we have done that."
At times, the "Blue Samurai" played with a flair associated with Brazil as they seized a victory that secured second place in their final Group E contest and left the Danes chasing shadows.
The result delighted and satisfied Okada, 53, who took over for his second spell as coach in December 2007, when Ivica Osim suffered a stroke.
"We were not passive, we were offensive and the team worked very hard," he said. "The opening win gave us confidence and the players ran and ran very much -- we knew the finals would be played in winter so we have prepared for a lot of running."
At home, Japanese fans celebrated wildly as dawn broke and police were called on to fish revelers out of rivers.
Newspaper headlines boasted of "history in the making", while television viewing figures nudged past 41 percent despite the game finishing just before 5:30am local time.
The famous "scramble crossing" intersection in Tokyo's Shibuya district erupted in a crescendo of chanting and drumming as more than 1,000 fans hugged as the final whistle blew. Screaming fans doused each other with water, gleefully ignoring police loudspeaker warnings to "stop being a nuisance!"
Energy drinks were being guzzled down as euphoria gave way to exhaustion and thoughts of a train straight to work. In Osaka, more than 50 fans plunged into the murky waters of the Dotonbori river.
Former Japan captain Hidetoshi Nakata, who retired from the game in tears after the country's meek exit from the 2006 finals, added his support. "That's the sort of game we've wanted to see," he said. "They've grown up at this World Cup. Now let's hope they can go further than we did in 2002."
Japan clinched its place in the second round for the first time on foreign soil by beating Denmark 3-1 in stylish fashion on Thursday, producing a brand of fast, slick and technical attacking football that delighted its fans and neutrals.
Two well-struck goals from free-kicks by Keisuke Honda, after 17 minutes, and Yasuhito Endo, on the half-hour, put it in command before a spirited Denmark revival saw it pull one back through Jon Dahl Tomasson after 81 minutes.
Courageous in defence, slick and inventive in attack, Japan then dazzled again and put the contest beyond doubt with a third goal, beautifully created by Honda for substitute Shinji Okazaki with three minutes remaining.
Japan now faces Paraguay in Pretoria on Tuesday.
Afterwards, it made it clear it believes that will not be the end of its South African adventure and it can go much closer to realizing coach Takeshi Okada's audacious pre-tournament challenge.
"I did talk of that aim (semifinals) before we came to the tournament, but it was mostly a target I set to motivate our team," he said. "It has mostly served its purpose now. It was vital for everyone to train with the highest possible motivation and we have done that."
At times, the "Blue Samurai" played with a flair associated with Brazil as they seized a victory that secured second place in their final Group E contest and left the Danes chasing shadows.
The result delighted and satisfied Okada, 53, who took over for his second spell as coach in December 2007, when Ivica Osim suffered a stroke.
"We were not passive, we were offensive and the team worked very hard," he said. "The opening win gave us confidence and the players ran and ran very much -- we knew the finals would be played in winter so we have prepared for a lot of running."
At home, Japanese fans celebrated wildly as dawn broke and police were called on to fish revelers out of rivers.
Newspaper headlines boasted of "history in the making", while television viewing figures nudged past 41 percent despite the game finishing just before 5:30am local time.
The famous "scramble crossing" intersection in Tokyo's Shibuya district erupted in a crescendo of chanting and drumming as more than 1,000 fans hugged as the final whistle blew. Screaming fans doused each other with water, gleefully ignoring police loudspeaker warnings to "stop being a nuisance!"
Energy drinks were being guzzled down as euphoria gave way to exhaustion and thoughts of a train straight to work. In Osaka, more than 50 fans plunged into the murky waters of the Dotonbori river.
Former Japan captain Hidetoshi Nakata, who retired from the game in tears after the country's meek exit from the 2006 finals, added his support. "That's the sort of game we've wanted to see," he said. "They've grown up at this World Cup. Now let's hope they can go further than we did in 2002."
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