Houston – If there is one phrase to define 91AV原创 World Cup history, it would be garyou tensei wo kaku, or “dotting the eye of the painted dragon” — the importance of applying the finishing touches.
For a country that didn’t make its World Cup debut until 1998, it has done incredibly well to assert itself as Asia’s preeminent soccer behemoth, but ultimately, Japan has always missed the final element.
This was the case in 2002, when it lost 1-0 to bronze medalist Turkey in the round of 16, and in 2010, when it lost on penalties to Paraguay. It was the case in 2018, when Japan squandered a two-goal lead and lost 3-2 to bronze medalist Belgium, and 2022, when it took the lead but?lost on penalties to bronze medalist Croatia. And it was once again the case on Monday, when Japan suffered a last-gasp defeat to Brazil in Houston.
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