Having said that, Japan played like shit. The team and players were good, but as usual, Chump Okada had them in their "unique Japan defensive formations," to wear down the opposition. so they could come on strong in the end. Huh?
Statistics
Paraguay Japan
18 Shots 16
6 Corner kicks 5
1 Yellow cards 4
0 Second yellow card and red card 0
0 Red Cards 0
58% Possession (%) 42%
If you watched the game and not the barrage of highlights this morning which only show the better of the shots, you will notice that of the 16 shots Japan actually took, only a couple that were well set up and within any sort of an effective range. The rest of the shots were launched from somewhere near Zimbabwe and there was plant life already growing on the ball by the time it got near the goal.
At this level, you don't give the other team the ball for damn near 60% of the time and have a great chance of winning, no matter how "unique" your defense may be. You need to take it to the opposition and get the ball in the nets.
The first move upon return to the land of four seasons for Team Japan should be the removal of General Okada, his staff and anyone who even knows his name. They need some new coaching to flush his entire "unique Japan soccer" out of their system and bring their playing strategies up to the level needed to win. They've got the talent, desire and support. They just need a leader. A shidosha that can let them win, not one that just wants to be unique even if it means losing.
