Japan took on Paraguay with a place in the World Cup quarter finals at stake. Both teams were unfancied at the start of the tournament. Watching the match you could see why.
With Conor Hogan
Japan 0-0 Paraguay (3-5 on penalties)
Wrap up:
Paraguay progress after winning in a penalty shoot-out. It was a poor game, but nobody in Asuncion will care. They are the fourth South American team to make it through to the quarter finals. It is now possible for all four semi-finalists to be from that continent.
It was a harsh way to lose for Japan, as they were at least as good as Paraguay (or at least as bad if you want to look at it that way). Paraguay will more than likely lose to the winners of today’s match between Spain and Portugal.
Thanks for joining us and for all your Honda puns.
Good luck and goodbye.
Penalties: Japan 3-5 Paraguay
Cardozo to win it for Paraguay. Sends the keeper the wrong way. Paraguay win!!!!!!
They go through to meet Spain or Portugal in the quarter finals.
Penalties: Japan 3-4 Paraguay
Honda. To stay in the game. Is he reliable? Brilliant penalty. Rolls it in.
Penalties: Japan 2-4 Paraguay
Nelson Valdez steps up and blasts it home. Great pen.
Penalties: Japan 2-3 Paraguay
Komano hits the bar!!!
Penalties: Japan 2-3 Paraguay
Riveros puts it straight down the middle and in the goal.
Penalties: Japan 2-2 Paraguay
Japan captain Hasabe steps up, and puts it into the top left.
Penalties: Japan 1-2 Paraguay
Barrios scores. Keeper got close.
Penalties: Japan 1-1 Paraguay
Endo takes the first for Japan, and easily puts it away to the goalies right.
Penalties: Japan 0-1 Paraguay
Barreto steps up to take the first one and slides it into the bottom corner.
It’s going to penalties. Ronnie Whelan suggests that Villar for Paraguay is an excellent penalty stopper, so that might give them an advantage.
Full time
“Switzerland v Ukraine all over again,” suggests Greg from Cork. That means we are in for a terrible penalty shoot-out then. May I suggest this game is about 0.12% better than that Swiss one.
Riveros gets harshly booked when the ball bounces up and hits his hand. He hasn’t already been booked, so he won’t miss Paraguay’s 6-0 loss to Portugal.
A great chance for Japan goes a begging. Tamada made a great run and played it to fellow substitute Okazaki. He backheels it to Tamada, who plays it across the box, but nobody can get on the end of it.
Da Silva heads Morel’s six billionth corner over the bar. Then Tulio Tanaka heads Endo’s seventh billionth free-kick wide of the goal. If this doesn’t go to penalties, I’ll eat my hat. Well I don’t have a hat. But I’ll buy a hat and then eat it. A tired tackle by Endo gets him a yellow card. He’ll now miss Japan’s 4-0 loss to Spain.
When I said extra time was good, I was talking relatively, and in comparison to the rest of the match. It is still not great. Paraguay have a free-out, which is launched down the field and comes to nothing.
Second half kicks off. Both teams look very tired. Even Barreto looks tired, and he only came on ten minutes ago.
Half time in extra time
Honda wins a free-kick, which Endo takes this time. It’s whipped into the box, and Villar in the Paraguayan goal almost spills it. Neither of these teams are settling for penalties.
Morels freekick pops up to Barreto five yards from goal, and he taps it over the bar. Extra time has been quite good so far.
Japan have a free-kick. Honda drives the ball low, and the keeper has to bat it away. The resulting corner is headed away by the striker Barrios.
Paraguay had a substitution. The disappointing Santa Cruz was taken off and Cardoza came on. Morel plays the ball into another substitute Nelson Valdez, and Kawashima pulls off a cracking save.
“I wonder will Honda be given licence to take a penalty. He must be starting to tyre after a taxing 90 minutes. The manager will probably give him the green light to continue,” writes the prolific David Sheehan. Pity we haven’t seen as many zingers from the players. Barrios hits his shot straight at Kawashima.
92′
Japan start well, Nakumara shoots and it is deflected wide. Okazaki heads over from the corner.
1700:
I don’t know if that was the worst match of the World Cup, it would take a lot to be worse than Brazil v Portugal, but with 30 minutes more of extra-time to come, it might well end up being so. Puns in a matchtracker are the equivalent of a Mexican wave in the stadium. Keep sending them in.
Full time
This match has had 36 fouls but only 14 shots. Honda gets booked.
There will be three minutes of stoppage time. The fans have suddenly started blowing their Vuvuzelas with some gusto. Japan have a free-kick from 50 yards.
The Japanese look fitter than the Paraguayans. I wonder was Japan’s sit back and defend strategy modelled on Muhammad Ali in the Rumble in the Jungle. Absorb all the punishment, and then win in the later rounds. Paraguay look like they are ripe for the picking right now.
Japan have probably been the better team last few minutes but haven’t created a thing. Paraguay look totally knackered.
Barreto has a rubbish shot from outside the box that goes straight to Kawashima. “Why are Japan being so defensive when they were so impressive last time out, and are usually pretty ambitious? It’s not like they are playing Brazil,” asks David Sheehan. They are usually pretty defensive. They parked the bus against Holland, and only conceded six goals in qualifying. I think it’s a risk thing. They only needed a draw against Denmark (who needed a win) and that perhaps suited them.
“If only Honda could create a clutch of chances, then this game could move up a gear , he is undoubtedly a wheely good player, great at taking corners and driving the ball, what age is Honda, 50?” says Jim from sunny Dublin. They keep on coming.
A throw played in by Carlos ‘no relation to Lisa’ Bonet, and is headed out for a corner. Nothing comes of it. Another substitution for Paraguay, Barreto comes on for Ortigoza.
Honda plays in Okazaki, but his chance is blocked and the ball goes out for a Japan corner. Nagatomo gets booked for handball, and will miss the quarter final if Japan get there.
Yet another Honda pun. “The Japanese players look exhausted. This game must have taken a back seat to the holiday plans for those lads,” writes Andy from Tallaght.
Morel swung in a free-kick that the Japanese goalkeeper Kawashima completely missed, though it went out for a goal kick. Kawashima actually collided with Tulio Tanaka, and the Brazilian born centre back is dazed. He should be able to continue though.
Okazaki comes on for Matsui. Earlier, for Paraguay Valdez came on for Benitez. Both offensive substitutions. Maybe they’ll improve the game a little.
Tulio Tanaka has a header that goes a few yards wide. But at least it’s something. It came off a Paraguayan defender, so it should have been a corner. Meanwhile, Paraguay do nothing from their fifth corner of the afternoon. Is it still the afternoon? Is it still Tuesday? Time doesn’t seem to make sense anymore.
Paraguay get another corner, and Rodriguez has a decent header that goes straight at Kawashima. Do something offensive, Japan! Anything at all. They’ve basically camped in their own half. They might as well build a fire, toast marshmellows, and sing Kum bay yah.
Benitez has a shot blocked excellently by Nakazawa. Paraguay do nothing with their third corner of the match. Matsui is booked for a handball in the middle of the pitch. Picky refs are grinding my gears.
“The South Americans have a good pair-of-guys up-front, should hold off the Japanese unless Honda gets a few brakes at the opposite end,” writes Dinny from 123 Fake Street. These puns are actually better than the match, though that isn’t particularly hard. Surely there can’t be many more Hondan ones though.
“Looks like this poor performance from Japan could be a Prelude to elimination. Yip, no end of Honda puns…” writes David Sheehan. “Honda’s performance in this World Cup looks like a Prelude to a stint in the Premiership. Heh heh,” writes George from Sallynoggin. Great minds think alike, eh?
Ortigoza looked like he had an oppurtunity, but it was a false alarm. He was tackled and it was cleared.
Second half kicks off.
“When I read ‘I was a little bit greedy and ate my second sandwich. I have a microwave curry in the fridge though if I get hungry again,’ I assumed it was Breslin who was covering the match,” writes David Sheehan. Shane will return to do the match tracker between Holland and Brazil on Friday, and I’m sure he’ll have a sandwich too.
Ronnie Whelan in the RTE studio is hoping for a bad tackle to liven the game up. A little bloodthirsty, but I’ll go along with that.
When I said ‘very poor second half’ ealier, that wasn’t a typo but a prediction. The first half was shocking though.
“If Japan win the world there will surely be a ‘Civic’ reception for them back home,” writes Brendan Bowman. Thanks for that Brendan. There seems to be an unlimited number of Honda puns going around.
Very poor second half. There’s nothing to talk about really. “You shouldn’t get these kinds of matches late in a competition,” says Ronnie Whelan. Darragh ask Dunphy what he’s ordered for dinner. “Stew, you cook it slowly. With carrots and lentils, and it’s going to mature at 6.30 after the extra-time and penalties.”
Half time
Good God this is awful.
“The Japanese are very hard working,” says Adrian Eames somewhat stereotypically. I also hear that the team like weird cartoons and are good at math.
“Honda drives the ball wide” says Adrian Eames. He skids it wide, he loses control etc. He has a great engine, he’s really motoring etc etc etc
“Just tuned in now, how’s it going so far? Is Honda motoring well up front? Is everything going ‘accord’ing to plan for him?” asks Jimmy from Killarney. Thanks Jimmy. Can we have no more Honda car jokes anymore now please? And no “Escape from Alcaraz” style puns either.
Not a hell of a lot is happening right now. This match has 0-0 written all over it in giant letters with permanent marker, and the makers of the marker aren’t being very helpful on their hotline.
Morel’s corner goes to Roque Santa Cruz, who blasts the ball wide from about eight yards. I have absolutely no idea where the goals are going to come from.
A Mexican wave has started. It probably won’t get the whole way around the stadium though because of all the empty seats. Japan’s entire strategy seems to amount to sitting deep and then shooting from distance if and when they break. Paraguay continue to have all of the ball.
I was a little bit greedy and ate my second sandwich. I have a microwave curry in the fridge though if I get hungry again.
Barrios is played in, makes a great turn but hits his shot straight straight at Kawashima. Then Matsui hit the top of the bar from 20 yards for Japan. They seem to know how to hit this ball better than most of the other nations.
Obligatory Vuvuzela review: An almost empty stadium makes them slightly less noisy but not any less annoying. Worse if anything. Like a noise you just can’t get out of your head.
Dull first few minutes here. The quality of passing is dreadful. Japan have a free-kick from thirty-five yards that comes to nothing. The ball hits Abe’s hand and Paraguay get a free out.
So far, Paraguay have dominated possession, and have had 72% of the ball. Japan have had two shots to Paraguay’s none. A Paraguay free-kick is gathered easily by Kawashima.
The referee is Frank De Bleekere, from Belgium. If you want to read up on his country, click on the hyperlink. Santa Cruz plays the ball into the box, and Riveros and Benitez collide going for it.
Japan have a second shot from distance in the first three minutes. Paraguay goalie Villar deals with it comfortably. Now Paraguay have a corner. Morel delivers, but it’s disappointing and easily cleared.
Game kicks off. Yoshito Okubo has a shot within the first twenty seconds that goes just wide.
Five changes for Paraguay, Ortigoza makes his first appearance. Santa Cruz will play just behind Barrios. Japan unchanged for the fourth match in a row.
The first half of my sandwich was alright. I prefer brown bread normally to white. I’ll keep the other half for extra-time.
‘What’s wrong with Dunphy? Tell us more – sniffly, hoarse or hungover?’ asks John O’Connell, Portlaoise. I don’t know John, he does look a little tired and emotional.
Darragh Moloney seemed concerned for Eamon Dunphy just before the ad break, and asked him if he was okay.
“They’ll cancel each other out. I think it’ll be a penalty shoot-out,” said Dunphy in the RTE studion, “and I’ve ordered my dinner for half six.” I feel the same and have my packed chicken and stuffing sandwich ready for the occasion.
If Paraguay win, there will be four South American teams in the quarter finals. The only team from that continent to get knocked out were Chile, and they were beaten by another South American team Brazil. Anyone have any ideas why they are doing so well?
Neither team has ever made it beyond second round, so we’ll get some history today. Paraguay are favourites, though Japan were excellent against the Danes. Honda has been outstanding.
Team news:
Paraguay: Justo Villar; Paulo Da Silva, Claudio Morel, Enrique Vera, Carlos Bonet, Nestor Ortigoza, Antolin Alcaraz, Edgar Benitez, Cristian Riveros, Roque Santa Cruz, Lucas Barrios.
Japan: Eiji Kawashima ; Yuki Abe, Yuji Nakazawa, Tulio, Yuichi Komano; Yuto Nagatomo, Yoshito Okubo, Yasuhito Endo, Makoto Hasebe, Daisuke Matsui, Keisuke Honda.
