Japan National Team Match:
Japan 0 - 1 Spain

Date: 25 April, 2001 Location: Cordova, Spain Japan 0 0 1H 0 0 2H 1 1 Spain Scoring Baraja (89') Cautions Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi, Kenichi Uemura (Yuji Nakazawa 89), Ryuzo Morioka , Koji Nakata, Junichi Inamoto, Toshihiro Hattori, Hiroshi Nanami (Tomokazu Myojin 79), Teruyoshi Ito (Takayuki Suzuki 89), Yasuhiro Hato, Hidetoshi Nakata (Daisuke Oku 87), Naohiro Takahara (Akinori Nishizawa 83) Canizares, Manuel Pablo, Sergi, Nadal, Paco, Guardiola, Mendieta, Herguera, Munitiez, Raul, Silva.

Phillippe Troussier named a lineup of players for Japan's trip to Spain that raised more than a few eyebrows. The lineup was quite a bit different from the team that travelled to France, with Troussier putting more emphasis on defence and physical stamina. However, it is still a bit unclear what he will do about scoring capabilities. The lineup for the Spain match (including two players already based in Europe) is listed below.

Notably absent from the roster were Shunsuke Nakamura and Shinji Ono, two midfielders who have been viewed in the past as the core of future Japanese teams. However, it is quite apparent that Troussier is not interested in flair or finesse in the upcoming match against Spain. After being humiliated and physically dominated in France during March, it seems that he wants to use the Spain match to inform anyone who might be watching that Japan has at least the capability to play "smash-mouth football".

As rumors from the training camp suggested, Troussier threw up a"five-defender, three-volante" lineup. Although the extremely defensive nature of this strategy made it a somewhat boring match, it was no secret that Japan wanted nothing more than a respectable score line ot get the press off their backs. Furthermore, if a few players had not turned in less-than-impressive performances, the match might have been quite a bit more interesting.

Japan's traditional back five included two "traditional" defenders, in Ryuzo Morioka (Shimizu S-Pulse) and Kenichi Uemura (Sanfrecce Hiroshima). Morioka has been capped in the back line several times, and Uemura has turned in a good performance for his club team this year. The third "central" defender, Koji Nakata (Antlers), has started in the back line for Troussier several times in the past, but for Kashima Antlers, he usually plays a defensive midfield role.

On the wings were Toshihiro Hattori (Jubilo) and Hato, who are both outside defenders on their club teams, but who possess good dribbling skills, reasonable speed and the ability to center the ball well. The most three-volante line consisted of defensive midfielders who nevertheless are able to support the offense and even score. Indeed, Junichi Inamoto (Gamba) has 3 goals in a Japan uniform and Hiroshi Nanami (Jubilo) has14 national team goals. The third volante, Teruyoshi Ito (S-Pulse) is a mystery selection. In the opinion of this reporter, Ito lacks the skills to play in any capacity for the National Team, but he seems to have caught Troussier's fancy in recent matches. It will be intresting to se how long the love affair lasts.

The team was rounded out by midfielder/striker Hidetoshi Nakata (Roma) and striker Naohiro Takahara (Jubilo). Although few observers expected Japan to win, Troussier definitely wanted deliver a message and hopefully get a score line more respectable than the 5-0 loss to France.

Obviously, Spain was not taking the match lightly despite Japan's 5-0 loss to France. Although only one player was called from a league outside Spain (Romero of AC Milan), the lineup included enough top talent that Spain was the clear favourite in this match. The main question, from a Japanese fan's perspective, was how well the team would perform -- especially the newer players -- and how competetive Japan looks against top-notch opposition.

In the first 10 or 15 minutes after kickoff, Japan looked a bit rocky. It was clear that the team was suffering from a bit of nerves, perhaps in fear of the reception they would get if they were blown out for a second consecutive match. However, while the team handed the ball away too easily in midfield, the defence held together, and as time went on, the jitters began to disappear.

Keeper Yoshikastu Kawaguchi was fortunate to receive a few easy balls early on, in order to gain confidence. Kawaguchi is a "streak" keeper, and performs best when he is totally focused on a match. Later in the half, the early touches would become valueable, as Kawaguchi's play kept Japan in the match from start to finish. After the first few minutes, Japan began pursuing Spain quite effectively. Although the Spanish team were clearly the more talented, and dominated possession, Japan's pressure kept them at bay, and allowed only a few good shots throughout the match.

In about the 16 minute, Japan got what would be its best chance of the match. Some nice ball movement in the middle of the field led to a long cross to Inamoto, who headed the ball back across the face of the goal. Hato, who had come forward in support, reached the ball at the far post, but Spain's keeper, Canizares, smothered the ball before Hato could get a decent shot off.

For its part, Spain got its best three shots of the first half in a five-minute stretch from about the 25 minute. First, Ivan Helguera sent a strong header for the high corner but Kawaguchi managed to tip it over the bar. Kawaguchi had to leave his feet to save a shot from Raul about two minutes later, and at the end of the sequence, Raul got off the most dangerous chance that Spain would get in regulation time -- a lob shot that forced Kawaguchi to backpedal frantically before just managing to brush it over the bar.

In the second half, play was somewhat more even. It was hard to tell whether this was because Spain was getting frustrated, or whether Japan was performing better. All the same, Japan's midfield, especially the side players Hattori, Hato and especially Ito, showed their limitations on offense, giving away the ball far too often on poor decisions and bad passes. While The defending was fairly impressive, Japan showed none of the coordination in midfield that they displayed in the Asia Cup. In fact, some might argue that Japan's offense looked better against Japan than against Spain. Takahara had a few nice runs, but didnt get enogh support to turn it into a scoring chance. Hidetoshi Nakata, thouhg he played competently, was not particularly impressive on either end. Nanami had perhaps the best match of all the field players, but he concentrated mainly on defence, and was only involved in the attack when passing to one of the forwards or wings.

All in all, Japan played a creditable match, and for a moment, it looked as if they might emerge with draw. However, in a game that had virtually no stoppages, the referees added on five minutes of extra time. In the second minute after regulation, Spain got a break that gave them victory. Some confusion at the back for Japan handed Pedro Munitis the ball about 30 meters out, and before the defence could scramble back, he managed to find Ruben Baraja with a slant pass. Baraja found the low left corner of the net to give Spain victory.

Here is the full roster for Japan's trip to Spain: