Japan’s football boss has slammed critics of the Blue Samurai on Thursday after the team’s World Cup return and confirmed he was searching for a new coach.
JFA president Kozo Tashima told a news conference that caretaker boss Akira Nishino will not continue in the role after Japan was kicked out in Russia.
After the Japanese squad was welcomed home by hundreds of flag-waving fans, Tashima appeared to take a veiled dig at commentators who slammed their tactics in their final group match against Poland.
Under orders from Nishino, the Japan players ran down the clock despite losing 1-0, knowing unless they picked up two yellow cards or Senegal equalised against Colombia in the other Group H game, they would pass.
Tashima said, “I want to thank all the people who said they hated Japan or wouldn’t support Japan anymore, thank you for your interest in us. There were positives and negatives but that’s all part of creating a football culture in Japan.”
Japan was kicked out in the last 16 after losing 3-2 to Belgium, who scored three goals in 25 second-half minutes to erase a two-goal deficit. Well, they tried though.
Tashima after axing former coach of the squad Vahid Halihodzic two months before the World Cup tournament said, “I wanted to improve the team’s chances by one per cent, I asked Nishino to produce a small miracle so I’m very proud of the team’s efforts. But I will not try to persuade him to stay.”
With former JFA technical director Nishino stepping aside, former Germany coach Jurgen Klinsmann has already been linked to the job, along with former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger.
“I’ve never personally felt disappointment like that before,” said Nishino, referring to the manner Japan crashed out of the game.
“I could never have imagined a scenario like that last 30 minutes.”
Nishino revealed that Japan had managed to win just one game, a 1-0 victory over 10-man Colombia in the opening game.
“The players dug deep and found that little bit extra we needed to be competitive at the World Cup,” said Nishino.
“We knew we would have to take a few risks. The players showed incredible desire and really went for broke.”
“People didn’t really give us a prayer, but we were desperate to prove the doubters wrong.” said Japan's captain Makoto Hasebe who retired from international football after their defeat.
Nishino tipped Japan to reach the knockout stage at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
“We’ve written a new page in history or perhaps half-a-page,” Nishino said. “But the future looks bright.”
Well let's keep watching.....
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