Japan World Cup 2018 profile: Ones to watch, best bets and more
Shinji Kagawa and company will be looking to help Japan leave a mark on the world stage in Group H.
Japan Factfile
- FIFA World Ranking: 60
- Sky Bet outright winner odds: 200/1
- Best Bet: Shinji Okazaki Japan top scorer at 6/1
- World Cup appearances: 5
- Best World Cup finish: Round of 16 (2002/2010)
- Nickname: サムライ・ブルー (Samurai Blue)
Coach - Akira Nishino: The 63-year-old, who was formerly technical director of the Japan FA, was only appointed in April to replace Vahid Halilhodzic after he was surprisingly sacked. A combination of poor friendly results and the coach's combative character led to Nishino being installed as a calming influence instead of the more combustable Halilhodzic.
Legend - Yasuhito Endō: He gets the nod as the Japanese footballing legend, after tallying 15 goals in 152 appearances for the Samurai Blue.
Star man - Shinji Kagawa: A household name amongst European football fans, with impressive displays for Borussia Dortmund and Manchester United. The creative midfielder can unlock defences and drive at the heart of the opposition.
Did you know? Japan is in Asia, made up of many different islands. The amount of islands is just under 7000, and has a population of around 127,000,000
Fun fact: Shinji Okazaki has scored in each of the last two World Cups - including one against Colombia four years ago. Japan will face Colombia again in their opening group game.
Qualifying: They won Group B in Asian qualifying, but only just as they finished just a point ahead of Saudi Arabia in second and Australia in third.
Fixtures: Colombia (1pm, 19 June, Mordovia Arena), Senegal (4pm, 24 June, Ekaterinburg Arena), Poland (3pm, 28 June, Volgograd Arena)
Japan squad
Goalkeepers: Eiji Kawashima (Metz), Masaaki Higashiguchi (Gamba Osaka), Kosuke Nakamura (Kashiwa Reysol).
Defenders: Yuto Nagatomo (Galatasaray), Tomoaki Makino, Wataru Endo (Urawa Reds), Maya Yoshida (Southampton), Hiroki Sakai (Marseille), Gotoku Sakai (Hamburg); Gen Shoji, Naomichi Ueda (Kashima Antlers).
Midfielders: Makoto Hasebe (Eintracht Frankfurt); Keisuke Honda (Pachuca), Takashi Inui (Eibar), Shinji Kagawa (Dortmund), Hotaru Yamaguchi (Cerezo Osaka), Genki Haraguchi, Takashi Usami (Fortuna Dusseldorf), Gaku Shibasaki (Getafe), Ryota Oshima (Kawasaki Frontale).
Forwards: Shinji Okazaki (Leicester), Yuya Osako (Werder Bremen), Yoshinori Muto (Mainz).
Japan Profile
It was a bumpy road on the way to Russia, but Japan managed to qualify for a sixth consecutive World Cup by pulling out their best performances in the games that mattered.
They had some poor results but wins over Suadi Arabia and Australia showed that they could raise their game for the big occasion, and there are none bigger than the World Cup.
They head to Russia with a different coach to the one that steered them through qualification, with the abrasive Vahid Halilhodzic replaced by a much steadier pair of hands in Akira Nishino.
They've only managed to get out of a World Cup group twice in five attempts so far, but they've certainly had talent as they've been as high as ninth in the world rankings - back in 1998.
Who to watch out for
Keisuke Honda has impressed on the international stage before and will be striving to replicate that this summer.
Shinji Okazaki will be expected to provide the goals for the Japanese.
How did they qualify?
It was a mixed bag for Japan in qualifying as they won six games, drew two and lost two when just about topping their group ahead of Saudi Arabia and Australia.
It was a cruise through the initial stage of qualifying as they won all but one of their games without conceding a single goal.
A 2-1 defeat to the UAE put them up against it in round three of qualifying, but a controversial penalty gave them what turned out to be a crucial 2-1 win over the Saudis in November 2016.
Automatic qualification was secured when Yosuke Ideguchi set up one and scored one in a 2-0 win over Australia giving Japan their first-ever World Cup qualifying victory over the Socceroos in eight games.
Any interesting facts about Japan?
Japan is known for its innovation and technology, and have produced a lot of cars with their noted brands Toyota, Honda, Suzuki, and many more.
Japan co-hosted the FIFA World Cup in 2002 alongside South-Korea, and will also host the Olympics in 2020 after previously hosting it in 1964.
Due to its highly industrialised section of the country, and pollution stemmed from gas producing plans, Japan sporadically has acid rain fall.
Any famous football moments?
Japan topped their group when they co-hosted the World Cup in 2002 and that was a highlight for the national team, but they lost 1-0 to Turkey in the round of 16.
Japan also had a strong showing in South Africa at the 2010 World Cup where they also reached the round of 16, but lost out in agonising circumstances after a dreaded penalty shootout defeat to Paraguay.