Japan reached the round of 16 for the fourth time at a World Cup. It got knocked out in the round of 16 for the fourth time in a 3-1 loss to Croatia on penalty kicks after a 1-1 draw in regulation and extra time. (More Football News)
EXPECTATION VS. PERFORMANCE
Coach Hajime Moriyasu said for months that the Japan team's goal was to reach the quarter🌄finals for the first time. So by that standard, Japan under-performed.
However, 2-1 victories over former World C🍒up champions Spain and Germany in the group stage showed Japan has improved enough to compete with top soccer nations.
🐼“Even though we could not🦄 break the wall of the round of 16 again, players demonstrated a new era of our soccer,” Moriyasu said.
Moriyasu talked of still needing to improve, but the coach said his players &༒quot;can look eye-to-e♐ye with anyone now.”
WHO'S OUT?
Fullback Yuto Nagatomo, 36, and goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima, 39, have each be༒en o🌱n four World Cup squads and certainly will not return. Nagatomo played in all four games, but Kawashima never left the bench. Instead, he served as a veteran mentor to the young team.
Captain and defender May☂a Yoshida🌱 was in his third World Cup and, at 34, most likely his last.
“I'm having trouble finding words to describe how I feel," Nagatomo said afte𓆏r t♋he loss to Croatia.
“We did everything we could until the very end. I trust that younger players, driven by this sense of regret, will make a b꧅etter future for Japanese soccer.”
WHO'S NEXT?
Three names come immediately to mind.
Midfielder Ritsu Doan, who plays at German club SC Freibur🍒g, scored two goals and will certainly be a backbone of future teams. Another is midfielder Kaoru Mitoma, who is having a stellar season at Brighton & Hove Albion in England's Premier League.
Mitoma𓃲 was one of three Japanese players𒈔 who missed their penalty kick in the shootout loss to Croatia.
The third is 🤡another midfielder, Takefusa Kubo, a 21-year-old at Spanish club Real Sociedad.
WHAT'S NEXT?
Japan💛 has qualified for the Asian Cup, a tournament it has♏ won four times. The event, scheduled for January 2024, was moved to Qatar after China withdrew, citing COVID-19.
