Asian teams go into the World Cup in South Africa looking to reaffirm the region’s growing stature, but they have their work cut out with none handed an easy draw.
Australia, Japan, South Korea and North Korea are the Asian Football Confederation teams flying the flag, with New Zealand enjoying their first outing at the World Cup since 1982 after qualifying via a play-off.
The Socceroos, whose coach Pim Verbeek will quit after the tournament, were the region’s standout performer at Germany 2006, finally beaten 1-0 in the Round of 16 by eventual champions Italy.
This time Verbeek’s battle-hardened and experienced team are pitted with three-time champions Germany, Ghana and Serbia.
Everton’s talismanic Tim Cahill is the standout player with Lucas Neill dominating the back four and Fulham’s Mark Schwarzer between the posts. They kick their campaign off against Germany in Durban on June 13.
“We can go to the last 16 — and in the last 16, anything can happen. It’s a tough group but the players are excited about the group, they see it as a challenge,” said Verbeek.
Japan also have high hopes, with coach Takeshi Okada repeatedly insisting they can make the last four, a goal that has been ridiculed at home with Cameroon, the Netherlands and Denmark awaiting them in the group phase. “I have not changed my goal at all,” Okada said in announcing his squad.
The country’s biggest star is former Celtic playmaker Shunsuke Nakamura while young midfielder Keisuke Honda, now at CSKA Moscow, is another gifted left-footer.
Leading from the back will be defensive rock and captain Yuji Nakazawa, who with over 90 senior appearances is one of Japan’s most capped players of all time.
South Korea, in their eighth World Cup finals, made it to the semi-finals in 2002 on home turf but struggled in Germany four years ago where they failed to get beyond the group stages.
Coach Huh Jung-Moo, whose team are in Group B alongside Argentina, Greece and Nigeria, will be relying heavily on Manchester United’s Park Ji-Sung and Bolton’s Lee Chung-Yong to lead by example.
They open their account on June 12 against Greece in Port Elizabeth.
North Korea play their first World Cup since their heroic run at the 1966 tournament, where they sprung one of the greatest shocks in history by beating Italy, but few give them any chance of making the knockout rounds. — AFP