The Japanese team could not get rid of the curse that accompanies it in the history of the World Cups and was stranded again in the round of 16 despite deserving better luck.
Painful removal again. The fourth was not the charm either. After ringing the bell in Qatar 2022 against Germany and Spain, he was close to repeating against the current universal runner-up, Croatia, and he says goodbye regretting the missed chances and errors in the penalty shootout… or the successes of Dominik Livakovic, turned into a real wall.
For the second time the Japanese team falls in the round of 16 penalty shootout. In South Africa 2010 they lost to Paraguay after finishing the match and extra time with a goalless draw. In Korea and Japan 2002, as host of the tournament, they left after losing to Turkey (0-1) with a goal from Umit Davala and in Russia they experienced a carousel of emotions against Belgium, ultimately third, after winning by 2 -0 and conceding a bit in the last moment of extra time (2-3).
He took the lead again on the scoreboard this time, although only by one goal. The ‘samurai’ Daizen Maeda, just before the break, raised the first goal of the match, something that he had not achieved against Germany and Spain and needed to come back. In view of the experience, perhaps it would have been better.
Croatia, eternally used to overtime and penalty shootouts in the knockout rounds, was patient, found the equalizer through Ivan Perisic and in the penalty shootout they again found the reward of a ticket to the quarterfinals.
Japan once again demonstrated their block, a superbly worked team, aware of their qualities and their opponent’s weaknesses, as they had done up to now. The Japanese were not going to bluff in this World Cup.
Al Janoub Stadium applauded Hajime Moriyasu’s team. He deserved all the praise for his deployment, his solidarity on the pitch, and even for his audacity against the great battleships of the world of soccer.
He was close to glory, taking a step forward to make history, but Livakovic ultimately snatched it from him by stopping three shots (the first two), a harsh punishment for a group that dreamed with capital letters and in a very well-founded way.
Source: EFE.
