A huge wave in Asian soccer, can Japan overcome the wall called the Netherlands? > News

The Japanese national team suffered a huge loss in terms of strength ahead of this tournament. Coach Hajime Moriyasu's worries deepened as Kaoru Mitoma, who was in charge of the team's flanks, and Wataru Endo, the core and spiritual leader of the midfield, went down due to injury. Nevertheless, Japan is still classified as a dark horse in this tournament because their player base has become thicker than in the past. Led by Takefusa Kubo, proven resources on the European stage such as Ritsu Doan and Junya Ito are in good standing, and they are optimized to use unique organizational pressure and quick counterattack tactics. Japan has a clear goal of overcoming the absence of key resources through tactical unity rather than individual capabilities.

The opponent, the Netherlands, is a European powerhouse in name and reality, but the recent atmosphere is quite complicated. The defense, led by Virgil van Dijk, and the midfield, supported by Frenkie de Jong, boast world-class weight, and the return of Memphis Depay from injury is giving a great boost to the attack. However, the team lost the friendly match against Algeria just before the tournament and struggled against Uzbekistan, showing signs of uncertainty as their performance fluctuated. This unstable trend in the Netherlands serves as an opportunity for Japan to aim for victory. Coach Ronald Koeman was also wary of Japan's organizational skills, suggesting that their ability to control the game would be the deciding factor in the game.

The outlook of the media and experts is also interesting. A number of overseas media outlets, including ESPN in the U.S., present figures showing the possibility of Japan causing an upset against the Netherlands, predicting that this game will actually be a bloody battle to determine first and second place in Group F. In particular, Chris Sutton, who accurately predicted Japan's victory over Germany in the past, predicted Japan's victory this time as well and highly evaluated their technical perfection. Commissioner Park Ji-sung, a domestic soccer expert, also highly evaluated Japan's current strength and said that it is possible for them to advance to the quarterfinals. These external expectations will be a great motivation for Japanese players, and at the same time, will come as a considerable amount of pressure to perform.

What’s interesting is Japan’s internal perspective. The Japanese archipelago was greatly stimulated by Korea's comeback victory over the Czech Republic, and many Japanese fans are looking forward to seeing Korea fight back against a strong European team like Korea did. Even within the Japanese team, there are voices emphasizing mental strength and fighting spirit that go beyond tactical perfection. Players like Maeda emphasize the importance of mental strength that transcends tactics, and are showing their determination to perform unwaveringly in the match against the Netherlands. This will be more than just a technical soccer match, it will be a symbolic stage to prove how Asian countries can change the paradigm of European soccer.