Interesting statistics give the Japanese Olympic team hope for a 'miracle' against Spain.
Báo Thanh niên•20/11/2024
Japan is capable of stopping Spain in the quarter-finals of the men's football tournament at the Paris Olympics, in a match taking place at 2:00 AM on August 3rd.
The statistics are favorable.
The match between Japan and Spain was one of the most anticipated matches in the quarter-finals of the men's football tournament at the Paris Olympics. While Spain was the defending runner-up, Japan had also won all three of their group stage matches with impressive form. Despite bringing a purely U23 squad (no over-age players) to the Paris Olympics, Japan still showed formidable strength, defeating Paraguay (5-0), Mali (1-0), and Israel (1-0) to top Group D with a perfect 9 points. Conversely, Spain unexpectedly lost to Egypt in their final match with a score of 1-2, thus finishing second in the group.
Japan won all their matches in the group stage of the men's Olympic football tournament.
REUTERS
According to statistics from the Japanese press, although the team nicknamed "The Blue Samurai" is considered the underdog, they have a historical advantage over Spain. Specifically, since the 1980 Moscow Olympics, when men's football had 16 participating teams (as in the current format), 10 teams have advanced from the group stage with a perfect record and all went on to reach the semi-finals. Nine of these 10 teams subsequently won Olympic medals, with only one exception: Japan at the Tokyo Olympics. Three years prior, Japan won all three group stage matches, reached the semi-finals, but lost to Spain, and then lost the third-place match. Olympic history only records three instances of teams winning all their group stage matches and keeping a clean sheet, all of which subsequently won medals. These were Spain (gold medal) at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, Argentina (gold medal) at the 2004 Athens Olympics, and Brazil (bronze medal) at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Japan (in blue) has no overage players in their squad.
Iran has again blockaded the Strait of Hormuz.On June 19, Iran reimposed a blockade on the Strait of Hormuz, citing Israel's refusal to withdraw its forces from southern Lebanon and the continued presence of US troops in the region.
At the Paris Olympics, there are currently two teams that have won all their group stage matches without conceding a single goal: Japan and France. If history repeats itself, Japan will beat Spain to reach the semi-finals.
Japanese coach confident
According to coach Tsuyoshi Oiwa, the focus and determination in all three matches helped Japan secure a perfect 9 points, thus qualifying for the knockout stage. "The players truly understood the significance of this match. I want to commend their spirit and concentration," Oiwa affirmed after Japan's 1-0 victory over Israel in the final match. At the Tokyo Olympics three years ago, Japan lost to Spain 0-1 after 120 minutes. The only goal for "La Furia Roja" was scored in extra time by Marco Asensio, an overage player. However, Coach Oiwa is not deterred by past defeats, asserting that Japan will showcase its own unique style of play when they meet Spain again. "Japan will analyze the tactics and find a suitable way to play for this match. Spain is very strong, there's no doubt about that. This match will be very difficult for Japan, but we will showcase our own style of play," Oiwa emphasized.
