“This was the stadium where Maradona scored the famous “Hand of God” goal against England during the 1986 World Cup, before producing what many still call the “Goal of the Century” in the very same match. Having admired Diego Maradona for so many years, being able to stand inside the stadium where those unforgettable moments happened was something I will never forget. Football history suddenly felt much closer”
of Asian football when asked about the region’s representatives heading into the global showpiece.
“Asian football is definitely strong,” said Kuyt. “I am from Netherlands and we are grouped together with Japan in the World Cup. Japan will be a very, very tough opponent. If you really follow Asian football, especially at National Team level, you see them grow a lot.”
“He’s a World Cup winner, a Premier League Invincible, and one of the most respected midfielders to have ever worn the Arsenal shirt. But when Gilberto Silva walks into a room, there’s no fanfare—just a quiet, calm presence that speaks volumes of the man he is”
The JFA has seen significant success lately, and when asked what’s behind this achievement, Miyamoto pointed to the solid youth training system established in Japan since the late seventies. To him, Japan has a really good youth training system and dedicated coaches worked hard to align their training methods, helping to develop young players. Miyamoto claimed that he was one of the lucky ones who benefited from the system in Japan. And he believes the foundation laid decades ago continues to pay off, with players showcasing their skills on European stages today”
“You know what was the quality of Croatia back then? We never surrender; we never give up. And we loved playing against a strong national team! What was there for us to lose? Nothing! We beat Italy, we beat Germany, we beat England, we beat all the big teams. Then again, all these started young in Croatia. And that’s also what I wanted to do: motivate all the young players to be proud of their country. The moment they touch their football crest or flag on their chest, singing the National Anthem out loud, it’s the country pride they have to play for. In that 1998 World Cup, we showed just that”
“Japan missed the 1994 World Cup in the United States with just seconds remaining. And for the 1998 World Cup in France, Japan won the playoffs with a golden goal. It was because of these two ‘hells’ (Doha-1993, where the Japanese cried) and ‘heaven’ (Johor Bahru-1997, where we got our revenge and cried tears of joy) that Japanese football improved drastically.
Southeast Asian countries will also soon experience their own ‘heaven’ and ‘hell’ as Southeast Asia will play one of the most exciting, if not the most exciting, World Cup Qualifiers in the World Cup”
“The FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 has seen many firsts, and has been deemed to be the best football tournament that has ever taken place over the years. Whether it was the advanced implementation of technology or the introduction of female referees, here are 6 moments the World Cup 2022 Qatar will be remembered for”
“Lots of upsets, plenty of miracles, and a handful of unforeseen; the FIFA World Cup 2022 had seen it all. Champions Argentina managed to leave behind their shock opening game defeat to Saudi Arabia and go on to win the tournament, but a few other giants could not follow suit. We now look at the 5 most disappointing teams who could not even make it past the group stage”
“It was the same bulk of nations who featured in the 2018 edition in Russia, with Qatar the only addition this year. And it also proved to be a much better showing of home support for the Asian nations, as 3 countries progressed to the knockout stage compared to only 1 four years ago – Japan.
It is also the first time that 3 Asian countries made it past the group stage, beating the record of 2 in 2010 and 2002. Let us look at each of the 6 countries’ journeys in the World Cup 2022 and how they fared”
“A total of 172 goals consisting of 21 headers, 14 penalties, 2 direct free-kicks and many other goals of variety, the World Cup 2022 Qatar is one that will be remembered for its spectacular goals and extraordinary upsets”
One of the most talkabout matches between Japan & South Korea in the 1998 FIFA World Cup Asian Qualifying Final Round. Check out the match & wonderful goals highlights from 1997.
