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| 사진=AP Yonhap News |
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| 사진=AP Yonhap News |
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Japanese soccer is being criticized for '2nd Army rotation'
Japanese soccer media Soccer Digest reported on the 6th that Japan is being criticized by each country after losing to Australia.
The Japanese national soccer team, led by head coach Hajime Moriyasu, lost 0-1 to Australia in Group C of the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 North-China World Cup at Optus Stadium in Buswood, Australia on the 5th. At the end of the second half, Aziz Behich lost a point and bowed his head. With this defeat, Japan took the loss for the first time in 13 games since the match against Iran (1-2 loss) on February 3, 2024. It was also the first defeat in 16 years against Australia since 17 June 2009 (1–2 losses).
From Japan's point of view, it was actually 'test match'. Japan has confirmed its advance to the World Cup finals in North Korea and the U.S. as the world's No. 1 except for the host country. Japan selected a large number of new faces ahead of the A-match in June. Seven promising players, including Sato Ryunosuke (Paziano Okayama), who was born in 2006, were selected as the A representative for the first time. In the ninth game against Australia, Japan also turned key players such as Takefusa Kubo (Real Sociedad) and Wataru Endo (Liverpool) to the replacement list.
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| 사진=AP Yonhap News |
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| 사진=EPA-AAP Yonhap News |
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Soccer Digest said 'Japan's defeat affected other countries. In this tournament, the top two teams will head to the World Cup finals. The 3rd to 4th place will go to the 4th qualifying round. Australia, which has caught Japan this time, is likely to come in second place. On the other hand, Saudi Arabia, ranked third, has become difficult to advance to the World Cup finals. In addition, Indonesia's chances of second place were extinguished even after catching China. As a result, there are criticisms from soccer fans in Saudi Arabia and Indonesia. Group C is competing in the order of second place Australia (16 points, goal difference +8), third place Saudi Arabia (13,0 points), and fourth place Indonesia (12,-5). According to the media, reactions such as 'Shame on you', 'What are you doing' and 'Japan is always disappointed'
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
