Have to agree there. France vs. Argentina had some goals, but this match had two teams actually trying.
Those Japanese players laying on the ground after the whistle.
They’re a good save away from winning the game and then that counter attack.
rho21
1946
Portugal - Spain was pretty good too.
Portugal Spain was good, but it lacked the drama of being eliminated. Facing certain death in the face woke up Portugal. Then it degenerated into a knife fight for survival.
No worries at all. Red Devils advance! (Whew!)
I can breathe now. That match was quite the ride. I was mildly worried for a while (though never thought we were done for). Credit to Japan who played their hearts out. The last goal made me feel for them while I was cheering.
The outlet pass from Courtois was just brilliant. Really, that was what made the goal possible.
A last minute goal on a counter-attack started by the Goalkeeper reminded me of a certain other goal.
wow japan must be gutted, thats a rough way to go out
That was exactly the play that popped into my head. Other team finds itself heavily committed, keeper easily takes the ball in the area and then the fast break is on.
Couldn’t watch live, so I recorded the Japan Belgium match and holy cow, am I glad I did! Belgium looked to have no energy in the early going but they sure woke up later. That last goal, with the Lukkaku decoy, just incredible. Although if I had to pick a play of the match, I think that double save by the Japanese keeper might have to win out, even in a losing effort.
Think the Red Devils might be a little more amped up on Friday? Doubt the coaching staff will let them start slow again!
Agreed. That was breathtaking. I freaking love good keeping.
The look on the keeper’s face after that bizarre header was just heart-breaking.
-xtien
I watched both matches tonight after work. The Brazil match made me scared at their form. It made me doubt myself wanting to support Japan. If Japan win, can they beat that Brazilian side? Maybe I should be rooting for Belgium?
And then that Belgium vs Japan game, my god. What a game. Japan really showed what they were doing by attacking from minute one, and being really forward in the field. Then that second half was just amazing. Both goals by Japan were exciting, but that second one, with the ball floating through the air with no spin whatsoever, floating into the corner beyond the outstretched hands of a fully extended Belgian goalkeeper? Beautiful.
And then that completely bizarre header by Belgium to finally score on the Japanese side? I mean, it was really starting to look like they were either going to keep missing everything or it was going to be kept out by the excellent Japanese defense and goalkeeper. Yoshida was in there as a defender and I saw him again and again and again. But then that bizarre header that went into the goal, I’ve had a goal like that scored against me in high school when I was a goal keeper, it just leaves you so confused because the physics of it doesn’t make sense in your head. And even watching that on live camera it made no sense. It only finally looked real after they showed it from two different angles later on the replay.
It was attacking football throughout, with very few fouls, each side attacking, attacking, attacking, and passing beautifully. And then that goal at the end with Lokaku walking over the pass and letting it go to the other striker? What a thing of beauty. There was no stopping that.
And then the other side of that dramatic ending with the faces of the Japanese players as they sat on the grass. And the face of the Japanese coach as he stared into space. Devastating.
That was one of the top matches I’ve ever seen at a World Cup. It just doesn’t get much better than that.
It really was. Also I feel SUPER bad for the Japanese team and supporters. That hurts.
Lokaku deserves a massive amount of credit for that final goal. Watch what he does. First, he purposely moves toward the middle, dragging two defenders with him and opening up space for the pass to the guy on the right side. And then he acts as the decoy and blocks out those two defenders and draws the keeper to him as the pass goes behind him to Chadli, who just knocks it into the goal.
With that said, this game was Belgium in a nutshell. Extremely potent offense, and worrisome defense. There was a point when it was 0-2 or 1-2 that the Belgium backfield was casually passing the ball to one another, and it was picked off by Japan right outside the box. It’s why I typed in WHAT ARE THEY DOING up above.
They can’t afford to play like that against Brazil.
Roberto Martinez’s strategy of trying to only play three backs nearly cost them against Japan. Kompany doesn’t have the lateral movement he normally would yet. And Aldeweireld and Vertonghen are stout defenders…but neither is fast enough to play on the outside in a 3-man defensive back line by himself, as Japan proved.
They try that against Brazil and it may be 6-0 at half. They’re going to have to adjust that formation.
The thing is that Brazil don’t have any outside defenders either, (even more so now that Marcelo is injured, (and he barely defends anyway)), so it may end up 6-3 at the half.
Ha! Fair point.
But yeah. Mauricio Pochettino must be shaking his head at Martinez trying to play Toby and Vertonghen on the flanks. For Spurs, they most commonly played together as center backs in a 4-man defense, flanked by Dier on one side and Davies or Rose on the other. I guess RM thought Japan couldn’t take them outside…but boy could they.
I only ever watch football during World Cup and Olympics. I too recorded yesterday’s matches and they were both hugely entertaining (vs Sunday’s games, which I ended up fast forwarding through.) While I know almost nothing about football, seems to me Brazil is going to be very difficult to beat.
Come on Shaquiri. That was half way between a shot and a pass. It needed to be one or the other, it can’t be both.
