The first round of the Group B of the 2022 World Qualifier Asian Zone 12 tournament came to an end on September 3rd in the early morning light. The Chinese men's soccer team was defeated by the powerful Australian team in a 0-3 defeat. The Japanese team in the same group unexpectedly suffered a fatal blow from Oman, making the pattern of Group B full of variables since the first round.
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Drops to bottom of group after loss to Australia
Although the Australian team was missing core players such as Leckie and the large number of players from overseas leagues affected the team's preparation time. However, as the hosts, Australia arrived at the venue in less time than the visitors, which set the stage for the
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brings the hope of picking up points. However, Australia are experienced having reached consecutive World Cup final rounds since the World Qualifiers in Asia. On the contrary
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Experience of winning in the Top 12 can be few and far between. In the end, against a strong Australian team
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Failure to win was a reasonable result, except that the three goals conceded somewhat undermined the team's confidence in defense. After that.
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Temporarily at the bottom of the group due to goal difference.
Group B in disarray as Japan unexpectedly capsizes
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Looking at the 36-point difference in the FIFA rankings with Australia
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The loss seemed to be expected. However, the Japanese team, who were considered the strongest in Group B before the tournament, met their Waterloo in the first round. They played against Oman at the Osaka Municipal Fukuda Soccer Stadium, and were eventually shut out by their opponents in the 88th minute of the match, losing 0-1. It is worth mentioning that the head coach of the Omani team is none other than the former coach of Shandong Province.
Luneng (city in Shandong)
of Ivankovic. Japan's loss may be related to their lack of understanding of their opponents and being too gullible; in fact, the Japanese team did not have an absolute advantage against the West Asian teams.
In the other match, Saudi Arabia beat Vietnam 3-1, but Vietnam had a 1-0 lead at one point at the end of the half. Vietnam had the chance to create another cold spell if they had not suffered penalties and a red card in the second half. Nonetheless, Japan's unexpected loss has thrown Group B into disarray, with Saudi Arabia and Australia's hopes for the top two spots in the group becoming even greater.
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Bigger challenge against Japan in the next round
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The loss to Australia was probably expected by the coaching staff. They would also have prepared plans in advance to deal with various complicated situations. However, Japan's loss at home certainly made the
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Surprise, which makes the next round of matches against Japan even tougher. Japan, who lost in the first round, will surely be vigilant and prepare for the match, aiming for at least a 3-goal advantage in the match, and possibly even a 4-goal or more goal difference win. Especially against the bottom of the group and more familiar with Oman's
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Japan will never show any mercy when it comes to
with regards to
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For that matter, the likelihood of getting points in the next round becomes smaller. However, in soccer, it is not always possible for the strongest team to win. Oman has proved that Japan is not invincible. If
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Being able to play good defense like Oman and wait for the opportunity to counterattack might be unexpected.
