The reason for the renewal of coach Moriyasu’s contract in Qatar came back with regret
He passed the “Group of Death” as the No. 1 player, and when he returned home, he succeeded in renewing his contract for four years to aim for the next World Cup, but his anger is still lingering.
This is the story of Japanese national soccer team coach Hajime Moriyasu, who agreed with the Japan Football Association (JFA) on the 28th to serve a second term in the national team.
JFA officially announced on the 28th that it has agreed to a contract with Moriyasu as the coach of “Samurai Blue (a nickname for the Japanese national soccer team)” aiming for the 26th World Cup.
As a result, Moriyasu became the first coach in the history of Japanese soccer to renew his contract after the World Cup.
Japan formed Group F of the “Death Group” with Germany, Spain, and Costa Rica in the Qatar World Cup finals, which ended on the 19th, but reached the round of 16 for the first time in Asia, winning both Germany and Spain 2-1.
Then, foreign media predicted that Japan would beat Croatia in the quarterfinals to advance to the quarterfinals.
However, Japan lost in the round of 16 in vain, creating the worst moment of missing three players on penalties after a 1-1 draw with Croatia after a bloody battle in overtime.
In other words, coach Moriyasu’s pledge, which he said before leaving the country, “the goal of the quarterfinals,” did not cross the ninth ridge.
Moriyasu also recalled his feelings at a press conference after his contract was renewed on the 28th.
According to a report by “Sankei Sports,” Moriyasu said, “I thought it ended without reaching the goal of the quarterfinals after the World Cup.” At the same time, I remembered that I gave joy to the people with soccer, he said. “It was because I accepted a second term because I came back from Qatar with resentment.”
He then cited upgrading the striker as a detailed task to achieve the quarterfinals four years later.
In the Qatar World Cup, Japan caught Germany and Spain in a row with counterattack soccer that was not like Japan.
However, Moriyasu also saw through the fact that he had to take the lead, attack and score goals.
He said, “Two coaches should take over as J-League coaches and look for a new coaching staff,” adding, “Counter Attack is good, but I want to bring a coach who can shoot a lot in the attacking area, creating opportunities while catching the ball.”