Japanese Coach Admits His Foster Children Have Improved Against The Indonesian National Team

JAKARTA - Japan managed to take three points in the last match of Group D of the 2023 Asian Cup. Samurai Blue won 3-1 against the Indonesian national team at Al Thumama Stadium on Wednesday, January 24, 2024.

They will now face Bahrain in the round of 16 of the 2023 Asian Cup, Wednesday, January 31, 2024, after qualifying as runners-up in Group D.

Japan seemed more confident after coming out of the needle in the group phase. You see, they had to fight until the last match against the Indonesian national team before confirming the move to the knockout stages.

Before fighting Indonesia, Hajime Moriyasu, the Japanese coach, was almost frustrated. He then opened a discussion with the coaching team and players to reform his troops which he felt had not shown a slick performance in the two group matches.

Eight changes in the line-up were made. As a result, they won against the Indonesian national team.

Not only that, Moriyasu learned a lot from his performance against the Garuda Squad. Shin Tae-yong's team was able to expose some of the weaknesses of the Blue Samurai.

"After the last game, we looked back and tried to find things that we had to improve on. I think the players are all focused and able to perform 100 percent."

"In the end the score became 3-1 and we increased. I asked my players to be more aggressive early and they showed this".

"We got a penalty early in the game. It allowed us to control the game for the full 90 minutes," said Moriyasu.

The increase seen in the last match against the Indonesian national team was a provision for Japan. They are well aware that the Garuda Squad, which was not taken into account, turned out to be very competitive.

This became the motivation of the Blue Samurai ahead of Bahrain's match in the round of 16 of the 2023 Asian Cup.

"This is a sign of respect for us when people say we are struggling. We have high expectations. People know we can play better."

"However, the Asian teams are developing, not just us. All Asian countries are growing and becoming more competitive. The gap between the top teams and the teams below has been cut."

"We have to learn from the mistakes in the first three matches (the group phase). However, that doesn't mean we are worried about our defense for the match against Bahrain," said Moriyasu.

Bahrain emerged as the winner of Group E above South Korea. Moriyasu has also observed the strength of his opponent.

Of course, Bahrain's attack line is a serious threat considering Japan's defense is still not solid.

"Bahrain is a strong team, so we have to be careful with the game attacking them. I'm sure my players will be playing up to 100 percent." "Bahrain is a very talented team. They have individual talent, but they can also work as a team, as a unit".

"They are strong as a team. They can not only counterattack, but also have talented players on the front lines who can play good football," said Moriyasu.

The match between Bahrain vs Japan will be held at the Al Thumama Stadium on Wednesday, January 31, 2024, at 18.30 WIB.