Japan and Spain will meet in their final Group E match at the World Cup on Thursday knowing a win for either will see them through to the knockout stages, while defeat could prove catastrophic.
Spain currently sit top of the section after following up a resounding 7-0 demolition of Costa Rica with a hard-fought 1-1 draw against Germany and another win on Thursday will see them qualify as group winners.
A draw will also be enough to take La Roja through, but a defeat would leave them vulnerable to an early elimination.
Japan followed up their shock 2-1 victory over Germany by losing to Costa Rica, but they still have qualification in their own hands.
A win against Spain would send them through, while a draw could also prove enough depending on the result from the other match in Group E.
However, defeat would end Samurai Blue’s hopes of making it through to the knockout stages.
Team news
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Defenders Takehiro Tomiyasu and Hiroki Sakai missed Japan’s defeat to Costa Rica and they both remain doubtful due to hamstring injuries, while midfielder Wataru Endo is a doubt with a knee problem.
Ao Tanaka and Gaku Shibasaki are vying to replace Endo in the middle of the park should the Stuttgart star fail to recover in time.
Spain have doubts surrounding the fitness of teenager Gavi, who has missed training over recent days due to what is believed to be a minor problem.
With fellow midfielder and captain Sergio Busquets set to be rested for this game, there could be two positions up grabs in Spain’s engine room, with the likes of Koke, Carlos Soler and Marcos Llorente all hoping to come into the XI.
The stats
This will be the first-ever competitive meeting between these two sides, with the only previous encounter ending in a 1-0 victory for Spain in an international friendly back in 2001 – Ruben Baraja scored the only goal of the game that day.
La Roja have a good record against Asian sides in general, as they have never lost a World Cup match inside 90 minutes when facing a team from that continent, although South Korea did famously knock them out of the 2002 tournament on penalties.
Spain have also won their final group fixture in eight of their last nine appearances at the World Cup, the only exception being their 2-2 draw with Morocco in 2018.
Japan are looking to reach the knockout stages of the World Cup for the fourth time, but they have never achieved that feat at back-to-back tournaments, a record they will be hoping to change on Thursday.
Prediction
Spain have only lost one of their previous 13 matches and they underlined their qualities by putting seven past Costa Rica at the start of this tournament.
While they failed to hit those same heights against Germany, Luis Enrique’s side are still a team playing with confidence and they will be keen to wrap up top spot in Group E with a victory.
There is a feeling Japan may have peaked too early with their shock win over the Germans, and despite perhaps being unlucky to lose against Costa Rica, this feels like a step too far for Hajime Moriyasu’s side.
Samurai Blue did show they know how to score when facing top-level opposition against Germany and Spain can be defensively vulnerable, conceding against the likes of Albania and Jordan this calendar year.
That will certainly give Japan hope of getting on the scoresheet, but that is likely to be as good as it gets for them, with the Spain win and both teams to score perhaps appealing at 17/10 with LiveScore Bet.
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SOURCE: lifescore.com