WORLD CUP
June 16, 2014
Japan’s Honda finds magic —
but Blue Samurai fail in first match
World Cup Schedule
Brazil 2014
June 16
8:30am: Germany vs. Portugal
11:30am: Iran vs. Nigeria
2:30pm: Ghana vs. United States
THE ASIAN REPORTER n Page 9
By Joji Sakurai
The Associated Press
ECIFE, Brazil — It seemed like a
perfect way to redeem a half-year
of frustration.
The roar Japan’s star striker Keisuke
Honda let out after putting his team
ahead against Ivory Coast in the 16th
minute with a beautifully poised left-
footed strike appeared to be a release from
the derision he suffered this year in his
new role as AC Milan’s No. 10.
Honda came to the World Cup with
something to prove — and the goal he
scored showed he still has the lethal
touches that made him such a presence
with his old club CSKA Moscow.
For Japan, it was a shame the rest of
the team couldn’t find the inspiration that
inhabited their talismanic player. Ivory
Coast kept muscling forward, and
something had to give for a Japanese side
that showed uncharacteristic sloppiness
in its passing. Two strikes early in the
second half gave Ivory Coast a 2-1 lead
that they kept until the final whistle.
Japan’s other star — Manchester
United’s Shinji Kagawa — was
particularly ineffective in the match.
Anemic in attack, he sprayed passes early
in the first half and gave away chances
Japan was lucky not to be punished for.
But Japan can find a measure of
consolation in the fact that their best
player appears now to have found his form
just in time for soccer’s greatest stage.
R
June 17
8:30am: Belgium vs. Algeria
11:30am: Brazil vs. Mexico
2:30pm: Russia vs. South Korea
June 18
8:30am: Australia vs. Netherlands
11:30am: Spain vs. Chile
2:30pm: Cameroon vs. Croatia
June 19
8:30am: Colombia vs. Ivory Coast
11:30am: Uruguay vs. England
2:30pm: Japan vs. Greece
June 20
8:30am: Italy vs. Costa Rica
11:30am: Switzerland vs. France
2:30pm: Honduras vs. Ecuador
June 21
8:30am: Argentina vs. Iran
11:30am: Germany vs. Ghana
2:30pm: Nigeria vs. Bosnia-Herzegovina
June 22
8:30am: Belgium vs. Russia
11:30am: South Korea vs. Algeria
2:30pm: United States vs. Portugal
June 23
8:30am: Netherlands vs. Chile
8:30am: Australia vs. Spain
12:30pm: Croatia vs. Mexico
12:30pm: Cameroon vs. Brazil
June 24
8:30am: Italy vs. Uruguay
8:30am: Costa Rica vs. England
12:30pm: Japan vs. Colombia
12:30pm: Greece vs. Ivory Coast
MONTHLONG COMPETITION. Japan’s Masato Morishige, left, and Yuto Nagatomo (#5) struggle
with Ivory Coast’s Didier Drogba (#11) during a Group C World Cup soccer match at Arena Pernambuco in
Recife, Brazil. Although Japanese star striker Keisuke Honda scored a goal in the 16th minute, Ivory Coast
defeated Japan 2-1 in their first match of group play. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)
If the Blue Samurai can regroup from
defeat in their first match, they still have
an outside chance of getting through to
the knockout stages. Two victories would
put them through, and they have the
talent and the depth to beat their next
opponents: Greece on Thursday, June 19
and Colombia on Tuesday, June 24.
But the performance against Ivory
FIFA not criticizing Japanese referee over penalty
By Stephen Wade
CALL CONTROVERSY.
Croatia’s Dejan Lovren (#6) is booked
by referee Yuichi Nishimura of Japan
during a Group A World Cup soccer
match between Brazil and Croatia, the
opening game of the tournament at
Itaquerao Stadium in Sao Paulo,
Brazil. (AP Photo/Shuji Kajiyama)
The Associated Press
June 25
8:30am: Nigeria vs. Argentina
8:30am: Bosnia-Herzegovina vs. Iran
12:30pm: Ecuador vs. France
12:30pm: Honduras vs. Switzerland
June 26
8:30am: United States vs. Germany
8:30am: Portugal vs. Ghana
12:30pm: South Korea vs. Belgium
12:30pm: Algeria vs. Russia
June 28 to July 1
8:30am & 12:30pm:
Round of 16
July 4 & 5
8:30am & 12:30pm:
Quarterfinals
July 8 & 9
12:30pm: Semifinals
July 12
12:30pm: Third-place match
July 13
11:30am: Championship match
* All times listed are west coast
* Matches are televised on
ESPN, ESPN2, ABC, and Univision
* To view results of matches
already played, visit
<www.fifa.com>
IO DE JANEIRO —
The
Fédération
Internationale
de
Football Association’s (FIFA)
head of refereeing has declined
to criticize a controversial
penalty decision in Brazil’s
opening World Cup win over
Croatia — but said everyone
makes mistakes.
Brazil striker Fred fell to the
ground after minimal contact
with Croatia’s Dejan Lovren in
the first Group A game and
Japanese
referee
Yuichi
Nishimura pointed to the
penalty spot. Brazilian for-
ward Neymar converted in the
71st minute to make it 2-1 and
Brazil went on to win 3-1.
“We are human,” Massimo
Busacca, head of FIFA’s
refereeing department, said.
“There is not one human in life
that is not committing a
mistake. It’s part of life. The
referee
lives
with
this
responsibility.”
Busacca said Nishimura
“had a very good position” to
make the call. He showed
reporters one still frame of the
incident, but did not show a
R
video replay of the disputed
penalty sequence.
Busacca did not say if he
thought the decision was
correct. And he did not say if
Nishimura would referee more
games. He said the game
evaluation would be based on
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Coast also exposed mental lapses the
Japanese will need to address if they are
to have any chance of making it through.
“We need to change our mentality,”
Japan goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima
conceded after the loss. “It’s tough to
accept defeat in the first match. We just
need to give everything for the next
match.”
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90 minutes, not just one call.
One reporter suggested the
call was a mistake.
“Mistake,”
Busacca
repeated. “It is your opinion. I
let you think it if you want.”
Nishimura refereed four
matches at the 2010 World
Cup and is remembered for
sending off Brazil defender
Felipe Melo in his team’s
quarterfinal exit against the
Netherlands.
Nishimura and Busacca
were teammates as referees at
the tournament in South
Africa.
Busacca argued the role of
the referee was part of the
charm of the game, prompting
debates. He said some kind of
video replay system might
help settle debates, but
acknowledged a game can turn
in one moment.
“This is a World Cup,” he
said. “One decision can change
a lot.”