Conceding the last penalty kick, Japan's captain Maya Yoshida, although a little frustrated, but also confident about the future, "I hope that a lot of children watching the World Cup will be inspired by the dream of soccer, want to become a soccer player become more children. I look forward to these children in the future on the World Cup stage instead of us to break the curse, to fulfill the long-cherished dream of Japanese soccer."
Japanese media reported that the Japanese Football Association (JFA) is satisfied internally with the performance of manager Mori Boichi in leading the team and is expected to extend his contract for two years in January 2023 to kick off preparations for the next World Cup. As Mori said after his team's elimination, "We will stand up and move on to the next goal with the pride of fighting the world's strongest teams and defeating them."
Behind the scenes
Autonomous decision on the order of penalties, who has the confidence to go first
In the group stage, Japan is in the "group of death", with the same group of opponents, including Germany, Spain, Costa Rica, and eventually out of the group, the team has experienced a roller coaster of drama.
The first battle against Germany strong complete reversal, the second battle group strength of the weakest Costa Rica, the opponent was killed. In the final round of the tournament, Japan had to win against Spain, the strongest team in the tournament, to have a chance of advancing to the knockout rounds, but the team once again staged a comeback to advance to the round of 16 at the top of the "Group of Death.
The 1/8 finalists are no ordinary people. 4 years ago in Russia, Croatia ushered in the pinnacle of team history, and lost all the way to the final. The stage in Qatar, although many of the main players in the lineup retired, Modric, Perisic and others are four years older, but the strength of the World Cup runners-up is there.
Japan changed its strategy from the group stage against Germany and Spain, taking the initiative to increase its possession and scoring the team's first goal of the tournament in the first half by Daizan Maeda. After that, Japan, which had been playing with the wind, was in disarray, and Perisic's header put the two sides back on the same page. Neither side could get anything done in overtime, and the two sides went into a brutal penalty shootout.
Croatian goalkeeper Livakovic was the winner of the match, saving three penalties in a row to help his team advance to the last eight. Takumi Minamino, San_ and Maya Yoshida, on the other hand, became the backdrop as the three conceded penalties in succession, shattering Japan's dream of advancing to the last eight at the last moment.
It was reported that the order of Japan's penalty kicks was decided entirely by the players themselves, with reference to self-confidence and whoever was most confident going first. Skipper Morihoichi confirmed this, "Under such great pressure, every player who took the penalty kicks was courageous, and whether they succeeded or failed, I just want to praise them."
This time, substitute Takuma Asano failed to be the wonderkid again
Magic spell
Losing another penalty shootout, stopping the World Cup in the round of 16 for the fourth time
Japan's first World Cup appearance was in 1998, and over the past 24 years the team has participated in seven consecutive World Cups, including Qatar's, stopping in the group stage three times and in the round of 16 four times. The curse of not being able to reach the last eight is still there, but they are getting closer to poking through the windowpaper.
Japan broke out of the group stage for the first time on home soil in 2002, when they met Turkey, the World Cup's biggest dark horse, in the 1/8 finals, losing 0-1.
Japan again made it out of the group stage in 2010 in South Africa, along with the Netherlands, Denmark and Cameroon, and in the round of 16-8 they met South American rivals Paraguay, who lost 3-5 on penalties after a 90-minute and extra-time draw that ended in a 0-0 draw.
Japan was lucky to reach the last 16 of the World Cup in Russia four years ago, relying on fair play points. They took a 2-0 lead against the mighty Belgium, only to be pegged back by three goals in a row and killed off in injury time.
Japan's trip to Qatar was even more unfortunate than the previous three rounds. They beat Germany and Spain in successive reversals to get out of the "Group of Death", and faced Croatia with a 1-0 lead. Had it not been for Lovren's cross and Perisic's header, they wouldn't have had to drag themselves into a penalty shootout, and wouldn't have had to suffer such a regrettable exit.
Captain Maya Yoshida could not hide his disappointment after the match, "For the past four years, we have worked hard every day to improve and challenge ourselves in order to break through the barrier of the World Cup round of 16. It's really frustrating that we didn't get the result we wanted in the end."
Japan head coach Mori Boichi greets fans after the match. Photo/Xinhua
Team
Can fight no matter who is on the pitch, Mori's contract extension in sight
"This is the strength of the Japanese team at the moment, and we have to start from the beginning to prepare for the next World Cup." Dairan Maeda, who opened the scoring for the team in the tournament, said bluntly that generations of Japanese players have been striving for better World Cup results, and that he has learned a lot from the many veterans, and that he will have to lead the younger players to join them next.
Yuto Nagatomo, 36, is playing in the World Cup for the fourth time, and he has experienced three of Japan's four last-16 finishes. In the final moments of his farewell to the World Cup stage, he gave applause to the younger players in the lineup, "Failure will of course be full of regrets, but I just want to praise the younger generation who fought to the last minute and summoned up the courage to stand on the penalty spot. "
From Hidetoshi Nakata and Shunsuke Nakamura to Keisuke Honda and Shinji Kagawa, Japanese soccer has never lacked leaders, and it is the legacy of generations of players that has brought Japan closer to the World Cup's top eight. Now, Yuto Nagatomo, Maya Yoshida and Yongsui Kawashima have also finished their last shift, leaving the next four years for newcomers to hold up.
Who will be the next leader? We don't know yet. But the odds are that the man at the helm of this team will be Morihoichi, who is expected to renew his contract next January. Japan Football Association (JFA) president Yukizo Tajima publicly stated not long ago, "Mori Boichi has a strong ability to analyze the game and has gained the trust of the players, and has become a coach capable of leading and directing the team independently at the World Championships. He is able to unite the 26 players and give everyone the image of being able to fight no matter who takes the field."
Looking back at this year's World Cup, outsiders may still have doubts about Mori's strategy and tactics, especially about the penalty arrangement in the final game. But as Japan's famous Keisuke Honda said, the World Cup is a common thing, losing is losing, wipe away the tears still have to look forward, "can beat Germany and Spain, this kind of achievement will have a profound impact in the future. The next four years, the team's preparation has already begun."
Extended reading
The round of 16 1:4 against Brazil farewell World Cup, South Korea's head coach decided not to renew his contract
Globally reported Beijing time in the early hours of the morning of 6, 2022 Qatar World Cup round of 16 South Korea 1:4 lost to Brazil. According to Yonhap News Agency reported on the 6th, the day of the game, Seoul city early morning temperature dropped to minus 3 degrees plus snow, but there are still more than 33,000 South Korean fans gathered in Gwanghwamun Square without obstruction in the snow and wind, for the South Korean team cheering. Yonhap News Agency said that the South Korean team was honored despite the defeat. In addition, after the match, South Korean team manager Paulo Bento announced his decision not to renew his contract.
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Reports said the Seoul Metropolitan Government speculated that up to 33,000 people participated in the street cheering activities at Gwanghwamun Square on the day. People wearing down jackets arrived at Gwanghwamun Square six hours before the start of the game and waited for the start of the game by warming themselves with blankets, warming pads and other cold-weather items. The report also mentioned that the Seoul Metropolitan Government arranged more than 1,400 security managers around Gwanghwamun Square on the day to prevent security incidents, and the police also deployed 65 police officers, six mobile teams and 20 special attackers from 0:00 a.m. on the day.
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Yonhap news agency said that although the South Korean team did not qualify for the last eight with a 1-4 defeat against Brazil, South Korean nationals were proud of the South Korean team and admired the spirit of perseverance to the end of the struggle. In an interview with the media outlet, participants in the street cheering activities said that although the South Korean team did not beat Brazil, but with the spirit of struggle to reach the round of 16 to give the people a chance to enjoy the World Cup, and its never give up the fighting spirit is touching.
Bento, the Portuguese head coach who led South Korea to the round of 16 at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, said at a press conference after the match that he had decided not to renew his employment contract as head coach of the South Korean national soccer team, according to another Yonhap report.
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Reports said Bento said he had made the decision known to the players and the Korean Football Association, which was made back in September this year. He added that he will return to Portugal for a period of rest before deciding where to go from here. Bento also said that he was very grateful for the achievements of the Korean players and was very proud to coach the Korean team.
Yonhap News Agency introduced Bento, who took up the post of South Korea's head coach on August 28, 2018, and has been coaching the team for more than four years now, helping South Korea advance to the World Cup main round for the 10th consecutive time.