Agony in Qatar again as Samurai Blue fail to find World Cup nerve

AL WAKKRAH, Qatar: For a team that beat Germany and Spain in the group stages, Japan's three horrendous misses in Monday's (Dec 5) penalty shootout defeat by Croatia underline how the Samurai Blue still lack the nerve to make a deep World Cup run.

Japan oozed confidence against 2018 runners-up Croatia, relentless in attack and steadfast in defence in a tense match. But they crumbled when it mattered most, failing in their attempt to reach the quarter-finals for the fourth time in two decades.

It was another painful Arabian Gulf experience for Japan, who will see Qatar as their curse having come within seconds of reaching their first World Cup 28 years ago, only to concede a stoppage-time equaliser that sent South Korea through instead.

That moment is known in Japan as "the agony of Doha" and remains one of the country's biggest soccer setbacks.

It also demonstrates how after seven successive World Cups and four appearances in the last 16, the giants of Asian football still lack what it takes to go the distance.

In 2002 as co-hosts, they lost 1-0 to Turkey in the last 16 on home soil and eight years later in South Africa they lost out on penalties to Paraguay.

Fast forward eight years to the World Cup in Russia, Japan looked almost certain to have finally broke their duck, taking a two-goal lead against Belgium and holding out until 69 minutes, before conceding three late goals to miss the quarter-finals yet again.

On Monday in Al Wakrah, Japan looked like a team worthy of a place in the quarter-finals, hitting Croatia from the start with resolute defending and incisive runs down the flanks that created myriad chances as they went ahead before halftime and battled hard to get back ahead with the score levelled at 1-1.

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