Best Asian team in the world cup 2018

[elnino99]

They certainlyplayed a more beautiful and fluid football, but they had a wrong strategy.

They had a 2-0 lead against Belgium, but instead of controlling the game, they kept on attacking, leaving spaces behind.

Football is a 90+ minute game which requires 90+ minutes of discipline and tactical awareness. From this point of view we showed a lot more maturity and discpline than Japanese.

Having said that, It will take us decades to build the infrasturcture and the grassroots system which is in place in Japan. Ifhe had their system/development netwrok for 10 years, we would be a WC contender in every single world cup without any exageration..

First of all, Japan led 2-0 at the first place BECAUSE THEY WERE positive, fluid, and offensive-minded. Both their goals were very well-worked and neither were fluky. They would have never led 2-0 in the first place, if they parked the bus from the first minute. Very unlikely anyways.

Also, Japan didn't lose their lead because they were too open...they lost because genetically they aren't as strong and tall as Belgians and they had no answer once Martinez brought Fellaini and started lumping the ball in the box cross after cross. Belgium's first 2 goals were headers from crosses in the box where Japan had almost all their players back, defending with everyone (first one being a once in a generation header).

[Babak agha]

^Vertonghen even said him self that after the 2-0 he lost all hope and was already halfway in the plane back to home. Also the header he scored, he said he wanted to head the ball back in the box, but because of the spin the ball already had, it ended up in the goal instead.

[Pedram123]

Playing better football doesn't mean you get the win though.
If national teams played in an asian league consisting of lets say 16-20 teams, playing home and away every week - I think Japan would top us for sure, but in a knock-out stage competition? Reckon we are better and the favorites for the AC.
They have allot of quality on the ball though that cant be denied, they would be 2nd contender to win after us IMO.

[OFFSIDE_1]

Football isn't that simple. Playing with 10-men isn't necessarily a big disadvantage. The fastest red card in the WC was given to an Uruguayan player after just 56 seconds in the match between Uruguay and Scotland in 1986 and Scotland couldn't beat Uruguay.



They almost beat 11-men Belgium. Some of our fans are a little jealous lol.

Actually, in this case it is simple, lol.

I'm sure if you search hard enough you'll even find an example of a 9 vs. 11 game, where the team with 11 players had a tough time winning. Yes, there have been exceptions, but that's why they're called exceptions.

Playing with 10 men the entire game is ALWAYS a big disadvantage. There have been teams that have overcome this disadvantage, but the majority do not. To claim that it "isn't necessarily a big disadvantage" is simply not true.

[OFFSIDE_1]

First of all, Japan led 2-0 at the first place BECAUSE THEY WERE positive, fluid, and offensive-minded. Both their goals were very well-worked and neither were fluky. They would have never led 2-0 in the first place, if they parked the bus from the first minute. Very unlikely anyways.

Also, Japan didn't lose their lead because they were too open...they lost because genetically they aren't as strong and tall as Belgians and they had no answer once Martinez brought Fellaini and started lumping the ball in the box cross after cross. Belgium's first 2 goals were headers from crosses in the box where Japan had almost all their players back, defending with everyone (first one being a once in a generation header).

I don't think anybody is saying they should have parked the bus from the first minute. Obviously that is not Japan's way of playing and they don't have the players for it.

The point some people are making is, if you're up 2-0, and your opponent scores 3 goals in 35 minutes, clearly, the strategy was wrong. Yes, they got to 2-0 through a "positive, fluid and offensive minded" strategy, BUT, teams have to make adjustments, and a smart team will shift strategy based on the score. We also shifted our strategy against both Spain and Portugal when the scoreline changed.

If you're up by 2 goals against a strong Belgium team, you need to park the bus, especially if you are the underdog.

[Doctor DOOM]

To GolfPersique

Actually after 2-0, it wasn't so much that Japan left spaces behind ... as much as fall prey to the physicality &height of the Belgians. Something we can exploit in Asia cup as our lads are just as physical & tall.

However, after 2-1, their coach made a mistake of persisting with the same game and didn't opt for a cautious approach. Naivete? Brevity?
But at this point, I would take the park the bus approach.

They did well to catch Belgians off guard. And yes, vertongen's goal was extremely lucky. But that should have served as a wake up call.
This is where the big coaches are distinguished from young, promising ones.

As for Asia cup, Belgium & Poland shows Japan's weakness. CQ would benefit greatly from these two games as both can be something for TM to emulate

[DR Strangemoosh]

http://www.foxsportsasia.com/footbal...ld-cup-graded/

The first round of the World Cup is over and the second round is about to start. But how can we grade the Asian teams in Russia after the group stages?

SAUDI ARABIA: C-
It could have been much, much worse for Saudi Arabia and for a while it looked as if it might be after the nightmare of their 5-0 opening game thrashing to hosts Russia.
The Green Falcons had few expectations going into a first World Cup since 2006 and few became zero after events in Moscow on June 14. But the team rallied and improved to lose narrowly to Uruguay and then pick up a deserved 2-1 win over Egypt on Monday on a sticky evening in Volgograd. Saudi Arabia left with a smile on their faces after recovering respect and honour.
After the loss to Russia there was huge criticism back home and from some very senior sporting figures. At the press conference after the game, the question was asked to coach Juan Antonio Pizzi and to other journalists – could the coach survive the night, short as it is in Moscow in June? By the end, he was getting a contract extension to the end of the Asian Cup next January. The team turned a bad situation around.

AUSTRALIA: C
The Socceroos were the only Asian nation that failed to win in Russia. Yet, despite that, there was a sense that the team deserved a little more for their efforts than one measly point from what was a tough group involving France, Denmark and Peru.
Fans will look back at the 1-1 draw against Denmark as the pivotal result. Had there been a little more quality in the final third then Australia would have taken all three points against a beatable opponent. That would have changed the entire complexion of the final game equations and things could have been very different indeed.
As it was, the team were competitive in all three games but not quite good enough.

SOUTH KOREA: C+
It was the worst of times and it was the best of times. Two disappointing and narrow defeats against Sweden and Mexico meant that Asia’s most successful World Cup team were in danger of the nightmare of zero points and the same amount of positives.
That they were followed by a glorious and never-to-be-forgotten win against defending champions Germany put everything in a whole new light. It was the result and performance of the tournament so far and made headlines around the world.
Yet it highlighted the wastefulness of the opening two losses with silly mistakes making the difference albeit in generally uninspiring performances. Beating Germany to go to the second round (and had Mexico beaten Sweden instead of losing 3-0 that would have been the case) would have been magical. As it was, it was merely special.

JAPAN: B
Japan made it through to the second round by the narrowest of margins but that matters little – once you are through, you are through. In the second half against Colombia and for much of the Senegal game, they showed what they could do. An intelligent passing game was on display and this was a team growing in confidence after a good start.
There was some luck; the early penalty and red card for Colombia, the best team in the group and then the fact that playing top seeds Poland in the final game was ideal as the Europeans had been poor and already eliminated.
The Samurai Blue still lost but got through instead of Senegal because they had received fewer yellow cards. It was not the ideal way to progress but it will be forgotten as soon as the second round match with Belgium starts.

IRAN: B+
Iran were in a very tough group but got the same number of points as Japan and that is a source of pride and frustration. The world saw what Asia has known for some time; this is a team with talent, discipline and plenty more besides.
They beat a very good Morocco team, lost 1-0 to Spain to an unlucky goal and then drew 1-1 with Portugal in an epic battle. Four points is sometimes enough, sometimes not. On this occasion, it wasn’t but it was an impressive return.
Nobody outside Asia will be underestimating Iran again. Has they been in a different group, Group A for example, then they surely would have gone through to the second round. As it was, Team Melli were only a few inches away from Mehdi Taremi, still one of the most under-rated players in Asia, putting them into the next stage.
Cristiano Ronaldo will not forget this game in a hurry and all will remember just how good Iran were.

[GoIran]

^Vertonghen even said him self that after the 2-0 he lost all hope and was already halfway in the plane back to home. Also the header he scored, he said he wanted to head the ball back in the box, but because of the spin the ball already had, it ended up in the goal instead.

Vertonghen's fluke goal was crucial. After that goal, Japan mentally collapsed. They were really unlucky.

As someone said, they have better defenders than us. We have to park the bus to make up for individual inferiority in defense and it reduces our scoring firepower too much. We are better defensively than Japan but Japan is much better offensively than us. Overall Japan > Iran.

Our fans are confident of the upcoming Asian Cup but don't forget we scored fewer goals than Japan, South Korea, Australia, Saudi Arabia and even Iraq in the WCQ. I won't be surprised to see another PSO exit after 0-0 draw at the Asian Cup. We usually suck in the PSO.

[St_Mark]

http://www.foxsportsasia.com/footbal...ld-cup-graded/
The first round of the World Cup is over and the second round is about to start. But how can we grade the Asian teams in Russia after the group stages?
SAUDI ARABIA: C-
It could have been much, much worse for Saudi Arabia and for a while it looked as if it might be after the nightmare of their 5-0 opening game thrashing to hosts Russia.
The Green Falcons had few expectations going into a first World Cup since 2006 and few became zero after events in Moscow on June 14. But the team rallied and improved to lose narrowly to Uruguay and then pick up a deserved 2-1 win over Egypt on Monday on a sticky evening in Volgograd. Saudi Arabia left with a smile on their faces after recovering respect and honour.
After the loss to Russia there was huge criticism back home and from some very senior sporting figures. At the press conference after the game, the question was asked to coach Juan Antonio Pizzi and to other journalists – could the coach survive the night, short as it is in Moscow in June? By the end, he was getting a contract extension to the end of the Asian Cup next January. The team turned a bad situation around.
AUSTRALIA: C
The Socceroos were the only Asian nation that failed to win in Russia. Yet, despite that, there was a sense that the team deserved a little more for their efforts than one measly point from what was a tough group involving France, Denmark and Peru.
Fans will look back at the 1-1 draw against Denmark as the pivotal result. Had there been a little more quality in the final third then Australia would have taken all three points against a beatable opponent. That would have changed the entire complexion of the final game equations and things could have been very different indeed.
As it was, the team were competitive in all three games but not quite good enough.
SOUTH KOREA: C+
It was the worst of times and it was the best of times. Two disappointing and narrow defeats against Sweden and Mexico meant that Asia’s most successful World Cup team were in danger of the nightmare of zero points and the same amount of positives.
That they were followed by a glorious and never-to-be-forgotten win against defending champions Germany put everything in a whole new light. It was the result and performance of the tournament so far and made headlines around the world.
Yet it highlighted the wastefulness of the opening two losses with silly mistakes making the difference albeit in generally uninspiring performances. Beating Germany to go to the second round (and had Mexico beaten Sweden instead of losing 3-0 that would have been the case) would have been magical. As it was, it was merely special.
JAPAN: B
Japan made it through to the second round by the narrowest of margins but that matters little – once you are through, you are through. In the second half against Colombia and for much of the Senegal game, they showed what they could do. An intelligent passing game was on display and this was a team growing in confidence after a good start.
There was some luck; the early penalty and red card for Colombia, the best team in the group and then the fact that playing top seeds Poland in the final game was ideal as the Europeans had been poor and already eliminated.
The Samurai Blue still lost but got through instead of Senegal because they had received fewer yellow cards. It was not the ideal way to progress but it will be forgotten as soon as the second round match with Belgium starts.
IRAN: B+
Iran were in a very tough group but got the same number of points as Japan and that is a source of pride and frustration. The world saw what Asia has known for some time; this is a team with talent, discipline and plenty more besides.
They beat a very good Morocco team, lost 1-0 to Spain to an unlucky goal and then drew 1-1 with Portugal in an epic battle. Four points is sometimes enough, sometimes not. On this occasion, it wasn’t but it was an impressive return.
Nobody outside Asia will be underestimating Iran again. Has they been in a different group, Group A for example, then they surely would have gone through to the second round. As it was, Team Melli were only a few inches away from Mehdi Taremi, still one of the most under-rated players in Asia, putting them into the next stage.
Cristiano Ronaldo will not forget this game in a hurry and all will remember just how good Iran were.

Der:
“Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored.” A H

If you write a book praising Iran won't twist and obscure the fact that (regarding WC2018) Japan record is much better(They advanced and Iran did not) and They play much attractive games than Iran. Japan was the better a team.

[OFFSIDE_1]

http://www.foxsportsasia.com/footbal...ld-cup-graded/

The first round of the World Cup is over and the second round is about to start. But how can we grade the Asian teams in Russia after the group stages?

SAUDI ARABIA: C-
It could have been much, much worse for Saudi Arabia and for a while it looked as if it might be after the nightmare of their 5-0 opening game thrashing to hosts Russia.
The Green Falcons had few expectations going into a first World Cup since 2006 and few became zero after events in Moscow on June 14. But the team rallied and improved to lose narrowly to Uruguay and then pick up a deserved 2-1 win over Egypt on Monday on a sticky evening in Volgograd. Saudi Arabia left with a smile on their faces after recovering respect and honour.
After the loss to Russia there was huge criticism back home and from some very senior sporting figures. At the press conference after the game, the question was asked to coach Juan Antonio Pizzi and to other journalists – could the coach survive the night, short as it is in Moscow in June? By the end, he was getting a contract extension to the end of the Asian Cup next January. The team turned a bad situation around.

AUSTRALIA: C
The Socceroos were the only Asian nation that failed to win in Russia. Yet, despite that, there was a sense that the team deserved a little more for their efforts than one measly point from what was a tough group involving France, Denmark and Peru.
Fans will look back at the 1-1 draw against Denmark as the pivotal result. Had there been a little more quality in the final third then Australia would have taken all three points against a beatable opponent. That would have changed the entire complexion of the final game equations and things could have been very different indeed.
As it was, the team were competitive in all three games but not quite good enough.

SOUTH KOREA: C+
It was the worst of times and it was the best of times. Two disappointing and narrow defeats against Sweden and Mexico meant that Asia’s most successful World Cup team were in danger of the nightmare of zero points and the same amount of positives.
That they were followed by a glorious and never-to-be-forgotten win against defending champions Germany put everything in a whole new light. It was the result and performance of the tournament so far and made headlines around the world.
Yet it highlighted the wastefulness of the opening two losses with silly mistakes making the difference albeit in generally uninspiring performances. Beating Germany to go to the second round (and had Mexico beaten Sweden instead of losing 3-0 that would have been the case) would have been magical. As it was, it was merely special.

JAPAN: B
Japan made it through to the second round by the narrowest of margins but that matters little – once you are through, you are through. In the second half against Colombia and for much of the Senegal game, they showed what they could do. An intelligent passing game was on display and this was a team growing in confidence after a good start.
There was some luck; the early penalty and red card for Colombia, the best team in the group and then the fact that playing top seeds Poland in the final game was ideal as the Europeans had been poor and already eliminated.
The Samurai Blue still lost but got through instead of Senegal because they had received fewer yellow cards. It was not the ideal way to progress but it will be forgotten as soon as the second round match with Belgium starts.

IRAN: B+
Iran were in a very tough group but got the same number of points as Japan and that is a source of pride and frustration. The world saw what Asia has known for some time; this is a team with talent, discipline and plenty more besides.
They beat a very good Morocco team, lost 1-0 to Spain to an unlucky goal and then drew 1-1 with Portugal in an epic battle. Four points is sometimes enough, sometimes not. On this occasion, it wasn’t but it was an impressive return.
Nobody outside Asia will be underestimating Iran again. Has they been in a different group, Group A for example, then they surely would have gone through to the second round. As it was, Team Melli were only a few inches away from Mehdi Taremi, still one of the most under-rated players in Asia, putting them into the next stage.
Cristiano Ronaldo will not forget this game in a hurry and all will remember just how good Iran were.

I would actually give Saudi Arabia a D-

their win against Egypt was meaningless. Egypt had already checked out.

I agree with the Japan grade. In an 11 vs. 11, Japan would not have gone to the round of 16 and all this talk about playing an "attractive" game would be irrelevant. In an average group, even with the gift they got from the refs, they still needed an obscure "fair play" tie breaker to go through.

[St_Mark]

I would actually give Saudi Arabia a D-

their win against Egypt was meaningless. Egypt had already checked out.

I agree with the Japan grade. In an 11 vs. 11, Japan would not have gone to the round of 16 and all this talk about playing an "attractive" game would be irrelevant. In an average group, even with the gift they got from the refs, they still needed an obscure "fair play" tie breaker to go through.

"would not have " is fantasy, not a fact.

The difference between reality and fantasy

"Reality is the state of things as they actually exist, rather than as they may appear or might be imagined." In a wider definition, reality includes everything that is and has been, whether or not it is observable or comprehensible. ... Fantasy can be regarded as "other reality."

[Irandoust]

To GolfPersique
Actually after 2-0, it wasn't so much that Japan left spaces behind ... as much as fall prey to the physicality &height of the Belgians. Something we can exploit in Asia cup as our lads are just as physical & tall.
However, after 2-1, their coach made a mistake of persisting with the same game and didn't opt for a cautious approach. Naivete? Brevity?
But at this point, I would take the park the bus approach.
They did well to catch Belgians off guard. And yes, vertongen's goal was extremely lucky. But that should have served as a wake up call.
This is where the big coaches are distinguished from young, promising ones.
As for Asia cup, Belgium & Poland shows Japan's weakness. CQ would benefit greatly from these two games as both can be something for TM to emulate

Hello there Dr Doom, how are you?
With all due respect to your overall knowledge of the game in general, Japan is a type of a football team that can not possibly defend any lead that they usually earn through a hard work because they simply don't know how to do it.
Since the early 90's when Japan began their progress of reaching where they are today and under different world class managers, they have never learned to sit back and defend their one or two goal lead regardless of which team they face off against.
That mentality does not exist in their culture.
They way they performed against Belgium, is how they always perform.
If there is one honest team that consciously and or sub consciously tries to play an honest football, that team is Japan.

[DR Strangemoosh]

Der:
“Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored.” A H

If you write a book praising Iran won't twist and obscure the fact that (regarding WC2018) Japan record is much better(They advanced and Iran did not) and They play much attractive games than Iran. Japan was the better a team.

Agha, who is writing a book? I am just copying and pasting from another neutral website.... Indeed, the author of the article is cited by some members here as being "anti-Iran" (though I disagree).

[Nokhodi]

Rumor is that Klinsmann has already been signed to lead the Japanese National team.
Their fans are very disappointed.
Supposedly, he's basically a player motivator and does very little actual coaching.

[GolfePersique]

Rumor is that Klinsmann has already been signed to lead the Japanese National team.
Their fans are very disappointed.
Supposedly, he's basically a player motivator and does very little actual coaching.

The German version of Afshin Ghotbi I guess?!

But he did a good job after the downfall of the Germany in Euro2000.