Outright Odds: 300/1
Team File Winners: sixteen/one
Japan are a hard workforce to predict. Final calendar year they beat European champions Greece and acquired a credible draw with Brazil in last a long time Confederations Cup but their qualifying marketing campaign was fewer than convincing.
They misplaced just once in twelve qualifying matches, away at Iran, and 안전놀이터 topped the group In general, Nevertheless they only managed to attain in excess of two plans against a seriously depleted Indian facet and wanted last minute wins versus Oman and Korea DPR.
These types of feebleness in qualification saw the public demand supervisor Zicos head but the fact they certified for your tournament will save the Brazilian football legends work for the time being. Japan arrived at the next spherical four yrs ago but they'll do properly to reach that stage this time around.
The 2002 campaign noticed Japan defeat a dismal Russia right before narrowly losing out to Turkey in the second round. Legend has it that then-coach Phillipe Troussier chose striker Akinori Nishizawa, who experienced not played inside the tournament, forward of regular strikers Takayuki Suzuki and Atushi Yanagisawa because it was his birthday. Certainly Zico wouldnt make this kind of blunder?
A UK-based midfield trio of Hidetoshi Nakata (Bolton Wanderers), Shunsuke Nakamura (Celtic), Junichi Inamoto (West Bromwich Albion) and when fit, Shinji Ono of Feyenoord offers Japan their finest probability of achievement its the remainder of the workforce which lacks real Intercontinental class.
The common strike pairing of Naohiro Takahara and Yanagisawa will not get regular club football with Hamburg and Messina whilst the rest of the side is made up of people of your vastly improving J-League. Only 4 with the 23 gamers in final several years Confederations Cup squad were being based mostly overseas.
The centre fifty percent-pairing of Gamba Osakas Tsuneyasu Miyamoto and Yokohamas Yuji Nakazawa were good all through a qualification marketing campaign which conceded just five plans but Brazil, Croatia and Australia will provide a Considerably sterner exam. Portsmouth flop Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi, manufactured the scapegoat following Pompey shed four-one in your own home to Leyton Orient on his debut, has highlighted more than eighty situations in goal for his place.
Japan could be victims of their own personal current good results and expectation will probably be good at this many years finals. Whilst There may be loads of talent in midfield, the crew in general might not be nearly emulating their team topping exploits of four decades in the past and are not likely to figure within the knockout levels.
Suggested Bet
An unconvincing qualification marketing campaign and an absence of plans in the two strikers usually means Japan can't be backed to qualify within the team. In truth, they could be propping up the rest by the time the three first spherical matches are finished and backing towards them may very well be an even better expense than supporting them.
Croatia to beat Japan @ four/five