Japan's coach Takeshi Okada has said his side have a great chance of beating powerhouse Paraguay today to reach the World Cup quarter-finals by counting on Keisuke Honda's goalscoring clout.
Japan's coach Takeshi Okada has said his side have a great chance of beating powerhouse Paraguay today to reach the World Cup quarter-finals by counting on Keisuke Honda's goalscoring clout. "If we play 100 percent, we will have a sufficient chance of winning," he said on the eve of their last-16 match in which the two sides will battle for their first-ever World Cup quarter-final spot.
"My personal goal is not here," said Okada, who has boldly set his target of a semi-final spot in South Africa, a goal which has gained crediblity after Japan's surprise run to the knockout stage.
Honda has scored two goals and set up another as underdogs Japan upset Cameroon and Denmark and went down fighting 1-0 to the mighty Dutch.
"I hope Honda will also set up and score goals himself tomorrow," the coach said, adding that the 24-year-old is "physically strong unlike other Japanese, tough on the ball and has technically stable left-foot kicks."
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