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| The E-1 Championship (East Asian Cup) match between South Korea and Japan at Yongin Mir Stadium in Gyeonggi Province on the afternoon of the 15th. Coach Moriyasu is hugging coach Hong Myung-bo before the game. Yongin = Reporter Jeong Jae-geun cjg@sportschosun.com /2025.7.15/ |
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The Japanese national team is also shaking. We are considering the possibility of the worst group in the World Cup.
Japan's Soccer Digest Web on the 13th 'Unwelcome situation, could Italy and Germany come to the 4th port?' and highlighted the group formation of the 2026 North Korea-China World Cup.
The Japanese national soccer team, led by coach Hajime Moriyasu, recently performed below expectations in the A-match in September. Despite operating the first team against Mexico, which was the first game, it ended up in a 0-0 draw. The decision was made to exclude some major forces in the second game against the United States, but was seriously beaten by the United States and lost 0-2.
Against this backdrop, concerns over Japan's organization of the World Cup have emerged. Soccer Digest Web will have a draw on December 6th. It will be divided into four ports, and the three host countries have already decided that Mexico will be in Group A, Canada will be in Group B, and the United States will be in Group D. The problem is that there are four European teams in port 4. There is also a possibility that Italy or Germany will be in the lowest-ranked Port 4. It's an unwelcome situation.
The North Korea-China World Cup is the first competition to switch from the existing 32 countries to 48 countries. However, the draw method will be the same. 48 countries will be divided into 1 to 4 ports according to FIFA rankings, and a total of 12 groups will be formed into 1 group of 4 teams. Port 1 will include Argentina, the 'Defending Champion', as well as traditional powerhouses ranked 1st to 5th in the FIFA rankings, including Spain, France, England and Brazil, and teams that won tickets for ports 2 and 3 are expected to be placed according to the ranking.
The problem is four ports. Germany and Italy, which are considered European powerhouses, are performing below expectations in the World Cup qualifiers, raising the possibility of heading to the European qualifying playoff depending on the situation. If this happens, the team that passed the playoffs will be listed on the four ports. In addition to the two countries, Sweden, Poland, Belgium and Serbia can play four ports.
For Japan, even if it is included in the two ports through A-match performance, it can complete the worst group if the European team gets caught in the four ports. Despite being the strongest in Asia, he could not deny his desire not to meet the European powerhouse with four ports in the group stage. Japanese fans say "This could lead to an extreme group.", "I hope it's not just us, worst Joe," he said, expressing his earnest desire.
Meanwhile, Japan has expressed strong confidence in winning the World Cup until recently. Moriyasu was also confident that the Japanese national team would win the World Cup. "There are differences with the world's top teams, but I think it is a feasible goal if the Japanese national team fights with the ability, growth, and organizational power to save individuals. I will prepare for the World Cup with the goal of becoming the best in the world," he said, expressing his ambition.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
