Match of the guillotine in the round of 16 in the Korea-Japan match to become a reality. The Japanese national soccer team, ranked 17th in the FIFA rankings, lost 1-2 to Iraq, ranked 63rd in FIFA, in the second Group D match of the 2023 Asian Football Confederation Asian Cup at Alaiyan Education City Stadium in Qatar at 8:30 p.m. on the 19th (Korea Standard Time).
Japan was picked as the most promising candidate for the championship. Several media outlets, including “Euro Sports,” “Opta,” and “ESPN,” picked Japan as the top candidate and Korea as the second. As many as 20 of the 26 players selected in the final round were from European leagues, the prevailing view was that they had a solid balance in general.
Japan beat Vietnam 4-2 in the first leg. It was a 1-2 draw in the first half, allowing two goals only with set pieces, but Takumi Minamino’s two-goal and one-goal, Keito Nakamura’s come-from-behind goal, and Ayase Ueda’s decisive goal secured three points.
He also looked nervous, but Moriyasu Hajime did not worry. “I am not worried. You can learn from mistakes. It is important to prepare as usual. I think we can do better than in the last game. Of course, not everything was perfect. However, even if we play with the same team again tomorrow, we will do better,” he said in an official press conference ahead of the Iraq match. 에볼루션 바카라사이트
However, they felt different from each other. Japan, which only scored two goals in the first half, only scored another goal in extra time in the second half and lost in Doha. It is the 2024 edition of the “Doha Tragedy.” In October 1993, Japan tied the match 1-1 with Iraq in extra time in the second half of the Asian qualifiers for the 1994 U.S. World Cup. As a result, Japan failed to advance to the World Cup finals for the first time in history. Instead, Korea dramatically secured a berth to the finals, using the “Miracle of Doha.”
Meanwhile, a match between Indonesia and Vietnam was also held in the same group, which resulted in unexpected results. Indonesia, led by coach Shin Tae-yong who was considered the weakest in the group, won the match 1-0 with Arsenal’s penalty kick. As a result, Vietnam had two losses and Indonesia had one win and one loss.
Vietnam, which has been under the leadership of Philippe Trusier after Park Hang-seo left, fell to the bottom of the group with two losses, giving it the disgrace of being eliminated for the first time in the tournament. Coach Trusier said in an interview after the game, “I’m so disappointed that I lost, but I’ll do my best until the last game.”
Meanwhile, not only Vietnam but also Japan were greatly affected by Shin Tae-yong’s magic. Immediately, the possibility of becoming the No. 1 player on Japan’s own initiative dissipated. Upon Japan’s defeat by Iraq, Vietnam, which was defeated by them unconditionally, must win and win the third game to rise to No. 1 through gains and losses in the three-team winner-win tie.
As Vietnam lost, however, Iraq led both Japan and Indonesia in the winner’s race, confirming its No. 1 ranking in the group irrespective of the results of the third round. According to the winner’s rule, if Japan wins Indonesia in the third round, Iraq will be No. 1. Japanese media also stressed that Japan, which had dreamed of winning its fifth championship, is likely to advance to the round of 16 strongest teams as the worst-case scenario.
Japan defined its national team as the strongest team ever to win the World Cup. In fact, when Korea secured a 1-0 victory over Iraq in an exhibition match, it called the team “lack of decisiveness.” As such, Japan ended its 10-game winning streak in just one day, falling into a swamp.
This is not the end. As the Japanese media say, if Korea comes first, Korea and Japan, which were the first and second favorites from the round of 16, will face off. In many ways, the fate of several teams has been shaken by Japan’s poor performance and Shin Tae-yong’s magic. Attention is focusing on the outcome of the Asian Cup, which was confusing from the beginning.