Japan v. Holland

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Japan v. Holland

Japan Edge Holland In Technical Masterclass

by Jeremy Ruane

28,717 fans were treated to a technical masterclass at Vancouver's BC Place on June 23 as the reigning FIFA Women's World Cup holders, Japan, overcame Holland 2-1 to advance to the quarter-finals of Canada 2015.

It was an at times breathtaking display of possession football from both teams, with the Dutch every bit as good as Nadeshiko, without quite showing the accuracy and precision which the world champions employ. In the end, that was the key difference between the teams.

Japan sprung something of a surprise prior to kick-off by leaving both Homare Sawa and Yuika Sugasawa on the bench - both had participated in all three of Japan's group matches. But they scarcely missed a beat, although it was Holland who enjoyed the better of the early exchanges.

Lieke Martens and Vivianne Miedema worked a seventh minute opening for Sherida Spitse which she sent soaring over the bar, sixty seconds before Manon Melis executed the perfect air-shot inside the penalty area, having streaked clear onto a perfectly weighted pass from Martens, Miedema having secured possession by intercepting a free-kick.

Japan's response was clinical - they opened the scoring with their opening attack, in the tenth minute. Aya Miyama and Shinobu Ohno worked a one-two on the left which gave Japan's captain the time and space to measure a cross onto the head of Yuki Ogimi.

Her execution was perfect, and all Loes Geurts could do was watch as the ball soared over her head. But it crashed against the bar, and a feeble attempt to clear the sphere saw it arrive at the feet of Japanese fullback Saori Ariyoshi, who thundered home an unerring fifteen yarder into the bottom far corner of the net without breaking stride.

Straight from the kick-off, Holland sought an equaliser, Melis leading the raid. Her teasing cross to the far post was inches too far ahead of the flying figure of Martens, as she stretched every sinew in an effort to make contact and direct the ball towards the target.

Buoyed by the early goal, Japan began to get into their stride, and by the quarter hour mark Ohno had twice gone close to doubling their advantage, thwarted initially by Geurts and then by her own impishness, as she cheekily attempted to turn home Ogimi's cross with an improvised back-heeled effort.

After Nadeshiko goalkeeper Ayumi Kaihori had hurriedly cleared the danger as Miedema bore down on her at a great rate of knots, Japan cranked up the tempo and began to take the game away from the Dutch with their accuracy and precision, not just of passing, but of movement on and off the ball as well - their positional awareness is remarkable.

The day Japan don their shooting boots to compliment their approach work will be a day their opponents will dread. So much of their good approach play is undone by wayward finishing, with four attacks in ten minutes prior to the half-hour mark in this match underlining this.

Mizuho Sakaguchi - a terrific game, and a deserving recipient of FIFA' Player of the Match award - picked out Nahomi Kawasumi in the twentieth minute, and her low cross found Miyama ghosting in unmarked. But she steered her shot across the face of goal and past the far post.

Two minutes later, Miyama ignited a raid which was made by the overlapping run of fullback Aya Sameshima, who worked a one-two with Ohno - a super lobbed return pass - before volleying over the bar.

Further good work by Ohno engineered an opening for Kawasumi which she fired narrowly wide from twenty yards soon after, while an Ogimi cross-shot fizzed over the bar on the half-hour as the title-holders flexed their muscles.

Twelve minutes before half-time, Japan contrived a delicious move deserving of far better fate. A lovely slide-rule pass from Ariyoshi released Kawasumi on the overlap. Her cross arced over Ohno's head, but darting in behind her was Rumi Utsugi, who steered the ball past the post at full stretch.

Holland endeavoured to work their way back into it after this burst of Japanese prowess, but inaccuracy undid much of what they did which was good, despite the endeavours of Martens - one of the rising stars in the game - and Spitse, whose industry ignited many a promising move.

Japan were to have the final say before half-time, and should have doubled their advantage, Ohno heading past the upright after Kawasumi and Ogimi had once more prised open a Dutch defence bereft throughout the entire tournament of arguably their best defender, Anouk Hoogendijk, who never kicked a ball in anger at Canada 2015 due to injury.

The Dutch came out all guns blazing early in the second spell, but Japan simply responded with a

stunning move which left the impression "Anything you can do, we can do better!" This 54th minute raid began with a Kawasumi interception, with Ogimi swiftly assuming possession.

She played the ball across for Ohno, who carried on running around Miyama as she moved inside to take possession. Ogimi, meanwhile, was also making an angled attacking run into the penalty, while behind her, Kawasumi was also in full stride, providing width.

It was that width which Miyama utilised, but after beating an opponent Kawasumi's cross was blocked to safety by the fast-retreating figure of Merel Van Dongen, whose denial thwarted what would have been a wonderful goal. Little did we know that Japan had something even better planned in that regard …

Meantime, there were chances at both ends in the 56th minute, Stefanie Van der Gragt's tackle thwarting Ariyoshi after Miyama and Ogimi had combined. Play swiftly switched to the other end of the park as Holland's counter-attack culminated in Melis playing in Miedema, only for Ariyoshi - the same player denied at the other end of the park thirty seconds prior - racing back to curtail the threat in her own penalty area.

Only a super tackle by Van Dongen denied Ogimi after she had been picked out by Miyama just after the hour mark, soon after which Japan turned to their bench, and the female equivalent of Luis Suarez, minus the temperament - Mana Iwabuchi.

Within minutes of coming on, her speed of thought twice unhinged the Dutch, but her team-mates also mis-read her promptings - Ariyoshi, for instance, stopped making an overlapping run just at the moment Iwabuchi provided the pass which would have allowed the fullback to cross unhindered into the danger zone.

Back came Holland, chasing an equaliser. Melis, Martens and Miedema combined to set up substitute Kirsten Van de Ven in the 72nd minute, but she drilled her shot past the near post, three minutes prior to earning a corner - the newcomer's physical presence briefly gave Japan a few problems.

Spitse's delivery wasn't cleared, the ball ricocheting goalwards off Sameshima. Kaihori pulled off a superb reflex save to keep the ball out, then looked on as Sakaguchi cleared Van de Ven's resulting shot to safety.

Japan's response? Only the goal of the tournament, twelve minutes from time - and it says a lot for the Dutch that it took a goal as good as this one to end their hopes of advancing. Mark my words, they are going to be very strong contenders at France 2019 on this showing.

No prizes for guessing who was at the heart of this fabulous move. Iwabuchi pounced on a pass and swept forward before bringing Ogimi into play. She briefly over-ran it, but recovered possession, by which time Miyama, whose movement had completely befuddled Desiree Van Lunteren, was streaking up outside her.

A back-heeled pass into her captain's stride allowed Ogimi to create space for Miyama's cross. Instead, she pulled the ball back towards Iwabuchi, who had made an angled run towards the edge of the penalty area, all the while aware that Sakaguchi was racing in behind her.

Iwabuchi's dummy left the Dutch defence completely bemused, and afforded Sakaguchi time and space aplenty from which to curl home a gem of a shot which capped off the move of the tournament - 2-0, and how! One of the great goals.

Ariyoshi fired straight at Geurts as she looked to apply the coup de grace five minutes from time, but there was more drama to come, as the Dutch pulled a goal back in stoppage time thanks to a goalkeeping howler from Kaihori.

There appeared to be little threat as Van de Ven met Anouk Dekker's cross with a header, but what happened next only Kaihori can explain - the ball seemed to ricochet into the net off her shoulder.

It was certainly a goal Holland's display richly merited, and in the time remaining they came close to snatching a dramatic equaliser and taking the game into extra time. Only the determined defending of Azusa Iwashimizu prevented Miedema from capitalising as Melis fizzed in a cross with the last attack of the game, Japan progressing to the last eight on the back of a 2-1 win in one of the finest games of the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup Finals.

Japan: Kaihori; Ariyoshi (booked, 51), Iwashimizu, Kumagai, Sameshima; Kawasumi (Sawa, 80), Sakaguchi, Utsugi, Miyama; Ogimi, Ohno (Iwabuchi, 66)

Holland: Geurts; Van Lunteren, Van der Gragt, Van den Berg, Van Dongen (Middag, 86); Dekker, Van de Donk (Van de Ven, 53), Spitse; Melis, Miedema, Martens

Referee: Lucila Venegas (Mexico)

2015 Draw