If Japan had a defence as good as their attack they would be insaaane. A good striker too. So unlucky tonight, gunna be my new favourite international team I think. Everyone has started loving my previous one Belgium
To be fair though, Japan can't finish that well either against an organised defence. Italy were a shambles against a usual Italian defence. Normally, Japan wouldn't got within 20 yards of the goal because 1] Italy wouldn't have let them, and 2] their final ball really is so wasteful. They do have a tendency to make the wrong decision with the final ball and practically give it to the opposition, or it ends up bouncing around in the opponents penalty area before being cleared. Time and again, for all their extra possession they ran out of ideas around the penalty area, and it was only one or two excellent moves from individual Japanese players amongst the gifting Italian defence that ended with them scoring 3 goals. It's a shame because Japan play some lovely football that is attractive to those who are purist and those who simply want to be entertained.
So, after last night's thrilling match, Japan are now out of the competition. They have one more match on Saturday against Mexico to restore some pride. Let's hope Maya pulls through that one with no problems and can then enjoy some time off before linking up with the Saints lads next month. Exciting times ahead!
Score predictions for Tahiti vs Spain? Could it be double figures like a lot of people expecting, or are those predictions misguided? I'm gonna go for 9-0.
I don't think it will be as high as people expect. Perhaps a 4-0 or a 5-0. Spain will want to take it easy ahead of the Nigeria match.
wonr be anywhere near that, what odds are offered out of interest? My thinking is if England can beat San Marino 8-0 then spain should be able to better that against tahiti.
A reminder that Uruguay are in action against Nigeria tonight. Live on BBC1, kick-off @ 11pm. Be interesting to see if Gaston starts given his poor performance against Spain in their opening match.
How was he poor? He was one of the better Uruguay players on the pitch? Some people have been very harsh with him.
He wasn't poor - he barely touched the ball! This wasn't down to him, it was down to Uruguay's poor tactics and Spain's sensational performance.
He barely touched the ball, was hardly involved in the game and was subbed off at half-time as a result. So, yes, he was poor.
That should make no difference. Whether it was down to him or down to his team, the fact of the matter is, he wasn't effective in the role he was assigned and was subbed off at half-time because of this. In short, his performance was poor.
