NEW YORK, July 3 — Japan head coach Hajime Moriyasu said he will take time to consider his future in the role following his side’s round-of-32 exit from the World Cup against Brazil.
The defeat means Moriyasu has twice led Japan to the knockout stage of the World Cup only to fall in the first knockout round. Although Japan was unlucky to lose to Croatia on penalties in Qatar in 2022 and faced Brazil this time, the 57-year-old told a press conference that he would reflect on his plans. “I think I’ll take a bit of a break now and then I’ll need to properly reflect on the tournament. That’s all that’s been decided so far,” he said.
The coach did say he was pleased with the progress his country has made on the world stage, which it showed in an excellent first half when it led Brazil 1-0. “Japanese soccer, built up over history, is more than capable of holding its own on the world stage. I am convinced that if we continue this growth, we will certainly be able to become world champions.”
This World Cup has so far seen seven coaches — Marcelo Bielsa of Uruguay, Ronald Koeman of the Netherlands, Sabri Lamouchi of Tunisia, Hong Myung-bo of South Korea, Steve Clarke of Scotland, Miroslav Koubek of the Czech Republic and Sebastian Beccacece of Ecuador — either step down, end their contracts or be sacked after their sides exited the tournament. More are likely to follow, with Senegal’s Pape Thiaw also under pressure after his side surrendered a two-goal lead from the 86th minute to lose 3-2 to Belgium on Wednesday.
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