Japan’s World Cup 2022 campaign was a wild roller-coaster ride. The Samurai Blue experienced the incredible highs of beating not one, but two recent world champions in comeback fashion, as well as the lows of losing to Costa Rica and going out on penalties to Croatia.
But while they once again fell short of reaching the quarter-final stage, there was a lot to admire about the Japanese journey in Qatar.
So read on below as SBOTOP goes deeper into Japan’s World Cup 2022 campaign.
Moriyasu masterminds successful defensive system
Japan’s World Cup 2022 run will forever be remembered for their incredible come-from-behind wins over two recent world champions, Spain and Germany, as they won the group despite all the World Cup 2022 odds.
Both games followed a similar script: Japan go down early but don’t concede a second despite conceding tons of possession, then score two goals in quick succession in the second half and win the game.
Japan had some good fortune against Germany, who were still able to create several good chances but were simply unable to convert them. But they were sensational against Spain as they scrapped and clawed and prevented the Spanish from producing much of anything in attack despite their overwhelming possession.
Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu went into the tournament with a primarily defensive approach, one he was criticised for back home. But he stuck to the plan, his players executed it to the best of their abilities, and it produced two of the most famous victories in Japan’s history.
The Samurai Blue’s work rate on defence was something to behold. Despite seeing so little of the ball, they still continued to implement Moriyasu’s strategy to press and harry both Germany and Spain everywhere on the pitch.
It’s a testament to Moriyasu’s coaching that his team committed to such a gruelling playing style, which paid dividends in the end.
Samurai Blue show remarkable resiliency
Another mark in Moriyasu’s favour was his wise use of substitutions. His second-half moves against Germany and Spain were masterstrokes as subs Ritsu Doan (twice) and Takuma Asano scored three of their four goals in those 2-1 wins.
It was part of Moriyasu’s plan all along to start out games passively, then strike late with fresher legs, and it worked to perfection twice.
Of course, the players also deserve a ton of credit for executing this gameplan. It was far from easy to execute the half of the plan which required them to run relentlessly to press their opponents in possession, and it was even harder to then go the other way and score, but they somehow managed to produce World Cup 2022 highlights.
It speaks to the Samurai Blue’s physical and mental strength that they managed to come back and win twice against much-fancied opponents. They simply did not stop working hard and sticking to their plan, and they were rewarded for their remarkable resiliency.
Improvements needed in attack
As impressive as Japan’s overall performance at World Cup 2022 was, their attack was found to be a bit lacking. It was particularly apparent when they went up against Costa Rica in their second group game and struggled to break them down in a surprise 1-0 defeat.
Japan did play better against Croatia as they reverted back to their tried and tested strategy of playing without the ball. Unfortunately, they couldn’t quite pull off another upset as they lost on penalties.
Part of this shortcoming is the simple limitations of Moriyasu’s squad. With all due respect to Takuma Asano, but the squad is still missing a top-class striker who can consistently provide goals, especially at the highest levels of international football.
Having said that, there is undoubtedly a good deal of attacking talent in the squad, with the likes of Doan, Takumi Minamino, Daichi Kamada, and former Real Madrid youngster Takefusa Kubo.
While Moriyasu’s system was a major factor in their success at World Cup 2022, the next step for him and his side will be to improve their ability to attack opponents who sit deep and defend. It won’t happen often that Japan are the aggressors in major tournaments, but they need to have a better alternative style that they can turn to just in case. If the Samurai Blue can combine a more functional attack with that defensive system, they might make even more noise at the next World Cup.
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