Shooting the Breeze: World Cup 2010 Day 4 - Group E - Japan vs Cameroon
Japan survived a late Cameroon onslaught to record their first World Cup finals victory outside of their home country.
A turgid first half was brought to life late in the first half when Keisuke Honda made space at the far post leaving his marker M'bia Etoundi chasing shadows before slotting past Souleymanou Hamidou 7 minutes before half time.
Some unsual decisions by Cameroon boss Paul Le Guen appared to hamper the African side. Samuel E'too was played wide right, similar to how he played in the Champions League Final for Inter Milan but good though they may be you'd be hard pressed to find the players of a similar stature to Maicon, Sneijder, Zanetti, Cambiasso, Milito, et al in the Cameroon side of today. E'too cut a frustrated and isolated figure on the right wing as his efforts seemed wasted much of the time by his relatively inexperienced team-mates.
Rookie striker Choupo-Moting lifted the ball wide in the second half after E'too provided all the work and provided a moderate goal threat but the well drilled Japanese defence managed the threat provided by an increasing number of Cameroon strikers as Paul Le Guen's side became more desperate for an equaliser.
Japan retreated under the increasing Cameroon pressure and M'bia Etoundi almost made up for his mistake for the Japanese goal with less than 5 minutes to go when he powered a long range effort directly against the the bar.
Organisation was again the key as the Japanese kept themselves busy neutralising the Cameroon threat. They worked hard, maintained their shape and stuck to their game plan as Cameroon piled strikers onto the pitch in order to snatch an increasingly possible equaliser.
Goalkeepers have been under the microscope in this tournament, not least because of the controversial ball but also because of high profile errors made by the likes of England's Robert Green.
Souleymanou Hamidou had a dodgy moment close to the end when he lost the ball while Eiji Kawashima made a crucial save in injury time with help from Komano to clear.
All the talk after this game will question why Samuel E'too was apparently wasted in a wide right role and why Cameroon seemed so languid until it was too late. They are a young side, however, but they have it all to do now while Japan will be pleased to have secured an early win.
