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Rising sun Japan beats Cameroon to reach semifinals
Updated: Saturday June 02, 2001 10:07 AM
NIIGATA, Japan (AP) -- Takayuki Suzuki scored two goals Saturday as Japan beat Cameroon 2-0 to notch the fourth major upset of the Confederations Cup. Olympic Gold medalist Cameroon had come into the tournament a hot favorite, fielding a team that included some of its biggest stars. The Lions will now pack their bags, and Japan will advance to the semifinals. "We played a fantastic match," said Japan's national coach Philippe Troussier. 'We're in the semifinals now. Our goal for the World Cup is to get into the second round. This is a great achievement." The capacity 42,300 home crowd was roaring from the start and went wild when striker Suzuki, playing in just his first starting cap and second overall, found the net in the 7th minute. Japan dug up an undiscovered gem in the 24-year-old Suzuki, who was the spear of most of his team's most potent attacks. Defender Koji Nakata set up the first goal by sending in a lobbing pass into the square, where Suzuki blasted a right-foot strike past Alioum Boukar inside the far left post. In the 65th minute, Hiroaki Morishima, who had just replaced Japan's star Nakata, sent in a cross to Suzuki, who headed a powerful shot that was deflected by a defender and then fumbled by 'keeper Boukar en route to the net. "I don't think one goal was more important than the other," said Suzuki, sporting platinum-dyed hair. "Both were great, and the second one came at a crucial moment." Japan played attacking soccer from the start. In the 12th minute, Japan had another great chance when star midfielder Hidetoshi Nakata blasted a powerful free kick from 20 meters out. But his shot was deflected by a defender and into the arms of Boukar. Late in the opening period, the Lions sparked to life and showed the trademark flair that has made them the terror of defenses worldwide. Until the 25th minute, Japan's defense had largely neutralized Cameroon and the Lions looked surprisingly sluggish. When Cameroon finally came alive, goalie Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi was as magnificent as he was in Japan's opening 3-0 win over Canada, warding off a series of cannons from Cameroon within the space of five minutes. In the 26th, striker Samuel Etoo feinted past a defender into the penalty area and blasted a right footed shot that Kawaguchi was barely able to stroke over the net. Two minutes later, Mboma picked up the ball in the square off a deflection and fired point blank, forcing Kawaguchi into a reflex save. "I wish we had played against a less talented 'keeper," said downcast Cameroon coach Pierre Lechantre. In the 39th minute, Hidetoshi Nakata and Suzuki almost connected, but Suzuki's shot from inside the penalty area went straight into the arms of Boukar. Cameroon made two substitutions in the second half, introducing Joseph Job and Lauren Epalle to spice up the attack. But the offense lacked the potency it briefly regained in the last part of the 1st half. Play was tactical and sluggish until the 65th minute, when Suzuki scored his second goal. He almost had a hat-trick when he charged at a ball Boukar fumbled from a Morishima strike and just missed flicking it into the net. Japan recently caught the world's eye with its high-octane attack at the Sydney Olympics, but it has long been plagued by a tendency to waste scoring opportunities. That wasn't the case Saturday: The offense was lethal and defense smart and solid. In a tournament already studded with upsets, this one may have been the biggest. Unlike fellow powerhouses France and Brazil, Cameroon arrived with its biggest heroes: Parma's Mboma, Samuel Etoo of Real Mallorca, Geremi Njitap of Real Madrid. Lechantre praised the Japan side. "What I saw was a lot of world class players," he said. The Lions took gold at the Sydney 2000 Olympics, have won two straight African championships and are on the verge of qualifying for the 2002 World Cup, which Japan will co-host with South Korea. Japan takes on Brazil on Monday at Ibaraki, while Cameroon plays Canada on the same day in Niigata. LINEUPS: Cameroon: Boukar Alioum, Pierre Wome (76th Bill Tchato), Rigobert Song (Captain), Raymond Kalla, Pierre Njanka, Geremi Njitap (55th Joel Epalle), Samuel Etoo, Patrick Mboma, Salomon Olembe (55th Joseph Job), Nicolas Alnoudji, Marc Vivien Foe. Japan: Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi (Captain), Tomokazu Myojin, Koji
Nakata, Ryuzo Morioka, Naoki Matsuda, Junichi Inamoto, Kazuyuki
Toda, Shinji Ono, Yasuhiro Hato, Hidetoshi Nakata (61st Hiroaki
Morishima), Takayuki Suzuki, Akinori Nishizawa (73rd Masashi
Nakayama).
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