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The World Cup is approaching its semifinal this week, less African or Asian contenders, but the Asian teams have done a lot better than I thought. I do not think I was the only observer to be pessimistic before the start of the tournament with a record of five Asian teams.
Saudi Arabia has won its first victory since 1994, when Salem Al-Dawsari scored the fifth minute of extra time to secure a win against dull Egypt. Al-Suqour (the Falcons) finished third in his group behind Russia and Uruguay.
Egypt finished without points and could have had a better World Cup if its best player, Mohamed Salah, did not have to hurry. Justice was however served in Egyptian spirits when Russia had eliminated Spain in the round of 16.
Spain was a major disappointment, with its only 1-0 victory over Iran. While I had predicted that Iran would be Asia 's best hope for reaching the round of 16, they have not experienced bad tournaments despite their delay in the tournament. Spain and Portugal. The top-ranked Asian team managed a draw against Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal and beat Morocco, qualifying for the World Cup without conceding a goal in six games.
The Socceroos left the competition with a single point. Nevertheless, Australia gave some headaches to the French and deserved the credit of a valiant effort in a 2-1 defeat against one of the favorites to take away all the trouble. 39; year. They also drew a draw against a good Danish club, which was not a total disappointment and the Aussies can be proud of their team.
South Korea's second goal against Germany was a tear for Die Mannschaft. A 2-0 humiliation in the hands of the Taegeuk Warriors shocked the world. The Koreans have not only achieved the result of their lives, but they have made many more Mexican friends while the release of Germany in the first round, their first in 80 years, has placed Mexico in the phase with direct elimination. The Mexicans did not however overtake Brazil in a match that was undoubtedly the best of the stage that took place last week.
This brings us to the best side of East Asia and a favorite in the whole world, Japan. I had scratched them with the chance to qualify in their group that included Colombia, Senegal and Poland, but the Blue Samurai proved that many critics were wrong.
Japan Aging with iconic Keisuke Honda, 32-year-old skipper Makoto Hasebe, 34, played very well with Takashi Inui, Eibar's 30-year-old offensive midfielder, and Shinji Kagawa, 29, of Dortmund, to secure their place in the last 16 minutes
some justification that the blue samurai had the chance to qualify for the round of 16, advancing only to have received fewer yellow cards as Senegal in the H group, an unprecedented tiebreaker in the World Cup. They also took a lot of time when they virtually stopped playing in the last 20 minutes of their last group match, knowing that they were in the next round as long as Senegal did not score in his match. Fortunately, their bet has paid off.
But for most of the tournament, the Japanese showed an offensive state of mind and a spirit that never told them anything that served them well. They even increased 2-0 against Belgium before the Europeans, 58 places above Japan in the ranking of Fifa, roar in return. Even then, it took a goal in the 94th minute to finish the Blue Samurai.
Broken heart but still gracious, we could still see Japanese fans cleaning the arena of Rostov after their last match against Belgium. impeccable, with a note saying "Spasibo" (in Russian to thank) to show their gratitude to their hosts. Such a class of Japanese fans and their team impressed the world and won the hearts of football fans, including mine.
Reading this, there are only four teams left to play the semi-finals this week. Nevertheless, the Asian teams that participated did not disappoint us this year. The admirable output of Japan was an additional reason for pride.
Too bad that this "psychic" octopus who correctly predicted the results of the first three matches of the World Cup of Japan, will not be able to attend the final. It was transformed into sashimi even before the match of Belgium. Our Japanese friends love their seafood.
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