Preview: Japan vs. Croatia

GAME DETAILS
Japan vs. Croatia, Nuremburg, 15:00 CET
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World Cup Gear: Japan | Croatia

THE BIG PICTURE
Both these teams lost their opeining game (though Croatia at least have the excuse that they played Brazil) so both will be keen to claim three belated points and get their World Cup started. The downside is that whoever loses this game can start looking at flights home. Japan are probably less likely to settle for a draw, as they won’t fancy going into the final game needing a win against Ronaldinho and friends. Group F table

Scout Report - Japan
Zico’s men played some nice passing football against Australia, and looked to have secured a win until Tim Cahill spoiled the party. If their finishing had been sharper, they could have put the game beyond doubt before Cahill’s intervention, though there’s some debate as to whether their goal was legal. Mark Schwarzer definitley didn’t think so. Nakamura and Nakata will keep the midfield ticking along, but Japan desperately need someone, anyone to find their shooting boots.

Scout Report - Croatia

Crotia looked impressive against Brazil, even in defeat, and the loss may prove to be a case of worst game first. The defence was solid as expected, and when matched against Japan’s toothless attack all signs point to clean sheet. In many ways there’s more pressure on Croatia for this game as no one expected three points against Brazil, but will against Japan. Dado Prso will lead the attack, and Croatians everywhere will have fingers crossed that his famously dodgy knees don’t start swelling.

LIVEBLOG
Follow the match highlights as they happen on the Japan vs. Croatia LiveBlog and stop by to leave your thoughts and comments about the match.

Teams: Likely formation; shirt numbers; name, caps, goals, coach:

Japan (4-4-2): 23-Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi (90-0); 21-Akira Kaji (43-1), 5-Tsuneyasu Miyamoto (70-3), 22-Yuji Nakazawa (51-9), 14-Alex (73-5); 8-Mitsuo Ogasawara (51-7), 7-Hidetoshi Nakata (75-11), 15-Takashi Fukunishi (63-7), 10-Shunsuke Nakamura (61-16); 9-Naohiro Takahara (42-17), 13-Atsushi Yanagisawa (57-17) Coach: Zico

Croatia (3-4-1-2): 1-Stipe Pletikosa (51-0); 7-Dario Simic (81-3), 4-Robert Kovac (57-0), 3-Josep Simunic (43-3); 2-Darijo Srna (37-9), 5-Igor Tudor (53-3), 10-Niko Kovac (59-8), 8-Marko Babic (34-3); 19-Niko Kranjcar (22-3); 17-Ivan Klasnic (21-7), 9-Dado Prso (30-9) Coach: Zlatko Kranjcar

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TEAM BLOGS & DISCUSSIONS
Japan Team Blog
Croatia Team Blog