| Japan vs Coasta Rica |
|---|
| SCHEDULE | TIME |
|---|---|
| GAME | Japan vs Coasta Rica |
| DATE | 28/11/2022 |
| TIME | 03:30 PM (Indian Standard Time) |
| ARENA | Ahmed bin Ali Stadium |
| LEAGUE | FIFA World Cup 2022 |
| FULL TIME |
|---|
| Japan [0-1] Coasta Rica |
Match Preview of Japan vs Coasta Rica
Japan will be looking to build on their incredible victory over Germany when they continue their Group E campaign against Costa Rica on Sunday.
Hajime Moriyasu's side started their 2022 World Cup with a 2-1 win over four-time world champions Germany on Wednesday, while Costa Rica suffered a 7-0 defeat to Spain in their tournament opener.
Japan fell behind against Germany on Wednesday, with Ilkay Gundogan scoring from the penalty spot in the 33rd minute, but two substitutes turned it around for Moriyasu's team, with Ritsu Doan levelling the scores in the 75th minute before Takuma Asano won it with a brilliant finish in the 83rd minute.
Samurai Blue have now put themselves in a strong position to reach the next round of the competition, and they have previous when it comes to advancing through the group stage.
Indeed, Japan have progressed to the round of 16 on three previous occasions, including back in 2018, when they finished second in Group H before losing to Belgium in the first knockout round.
Moriyasu's side will finish their campaign against Spain on December 1, so there is no downplaying the importance of this match, especially as Costa Rica will enter it off the back of a thumping loss to Spain.
Japan progressed to the finals of the 2022 World Cup by finishing second in Group B, picking up 22 points from their 10 matches, which left them one point behind the leaders Saudi Arabia in the Asian qualification section.
Costa Rica have faced Japan on five previous occasions in international football, with all five fixtures proving to be non-competitive games, and Japan have recorded four wins, including a 3-0 success in September 2018.
Los Ticos are competing in the finals of the World Cup for the third time in a row, and they incredibly reached the quarter-finals of the 2014 competition, topping Group D ahead of Uruguay, Italy and England before overcoming Greece on penalties in the first knockout round.
Costa Rica saw their tournament ended by the Netherlands in the last eight, but it was a brilliant performance from the Selection, who beat New Zealand in the intercontinental playoffs back in June to ensure that they would be present in the 2022 edition of the competition.
Our Predicted Lineups
Japan possible starting lineup:Gonda; Tomiyasu, Itakura, Yoshida, Nagatomo; Endo, Tanaka; Ito, Kamada, Kubo; Asano
Coasta Rica possible starting lineup: starting lineup:Navas; Waston, Calvo, Duarte, Oviedo; Tejeda, Borges; Bennette, Fuller; Campbell, Contreras
Who will win the match?
We say: Japan 2-0 Costa Rica. Japan were brilliant against Germany on Wednesday, and it is really difficult to look past them when picking a winner here. Costa Rica should show improvement from their defeat to Spain, but we are fully expecting Japan to make it back-to-back wins in the section courtesy of a 2-0 scoreline.