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Japan v Paraguay, Round of 16: Liveblog/Open Thread

June 29, 2010 — by Suman14

The Japanese Maradona?

[Final Score: Paraguay 0 – Japan 0; Paraguay advances by winning PK shootout 5-3.

Paraguay advances to a quarterfinal matchup against the winner of Spain-Portugal (the last Round of 16 match, to be played later today at 2:30pm ET). Japan goes home, their hopes of representing Asia further in the tournament dashed.]

This is by far the most unexpected matchup of the Round of 16, with neither country having advanced to the quarterfinals of the World Cup before. Paraguay will be attempting to make the quarterfinals 50% South American (!), with Uruguay, Argentina, and Brazil having already advanced over the past 3 days. On the other hand, Japan is trying to become the first Asian side to advance to the quarterfinals since South Korea in 2002.

We’ll again be sporadically liveblogging–we will post scoring plays, details about individual players, and observations about the general run of play. We’ll count on you to provide color via the comments!

We are about 15 minutes from kickoff! Starting lineups and a very welcoming and empty comment box after the jump!



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[liveblog]22[/liveblog]

Starting lineups:

Japan:

Paraguay:

14 comments

  • Suman

    June 29, 2010 at 10:08 AM

    from http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/news/newsid=1263181/index.html

    Bleached-blond goal ace Honda dominated the front pages of Japanese sports newspapers, with the striker looking to continue his hot streak to carry the team beyond their first appearance in the second round on foreign soil. “Honda, make history tonight,” the Nikkan Sports implored, chiming with the Sports Nippon’s headline: “Make history! Honda shoots for last eight.”

    The striker’s haircut has been a major talking point during the tournament and Japanese media interpreted Honda’s even shorter coiffure ahead of the Paraguay game as an embodiment of his fighting spirit and national pride. “Honda showed up in the field with his vaunted blond locks shining even brighter and his eyebrows also coloured in gold,” the Nikkan Sports swooned following the team’s practice session Monday in Pretoria, South Africa. “Honda will face the historic battle, with Japan’s hopes and dreams on his back.”

    The striker, who helped CSKA Moscow reach the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals after moving from Dutch side Venlo in January, scored two goals and set up another as underdogs Japan upset Cameroon and Denmark and went down fighting 1-0 to the Dutch. Japanese TV stations were also upbeat about the Samurais, who many in the country had forecast to drop out of the first round before their unexpected victory against Cameroon in their opening match.

  • Sean

    June 29, 2010 at 10:53 AM

    Been cagey so far. Hope to catch some of the second half!

  • Ina

    June 29, 2010 at 11:45 AM

    Go Japan! Looking like extended time?

  • Ina

    June 29, 2010 at 11:54 AM

    Why was that a yellow card? Another bad call… I like Honda’s hair! 🙂

  • Suman

    June 29, 2010 at 12:01 PM

    You’re right Ina, extra time! Lame yellow for Honda on that hand ball…

  • ryan

    June 29, 2010 at 12:04 PM

    this game has been SLOW… i’m actually hoping for penalities at this point … though some great action in the japan box .. paraguay applying some nice pressure finally

  • ryan

    June 29, 2010 at 12:29 PM

    penalty kicks! woo!

  • antu

    June 29, 2010 at 12:33 PM

    been catching the game in between appointments but watching for sure now with penalties

  • antu

    June 29, 2010 at 12:34 PM

    who deserves the win more?

  • ryan

    June 29, 2010 at 12:36 PM

    i’d like to see japan take this .. they played more creatively … paraguay just defends too much …

  • antu

    June 29, 2010 at 12:40 PM

    AAAAAGGGHHHH – cross bar!

  • Evan Pinchbeck

    July 4, 2010 at 8:20 PM

    I agree with your Blog and I will be back to check it more in the future so please keep up your work. I love your content & the way that you write. It looks like you’ve been doing this for a while now, how long have you been blogging for?

  • Hindi sms

    July 24, 2010 at 3:36 PM

    Hey cool info mate..

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