Japan National Football Team Players chase Netherlands opener with Moriyasu belief
Japan national football team players begin their World Cup campaign against the Netherlands in Arlington on Sunday, with Hajime Moriyasu saying they have a chance to win the competition. Japan have still never gone beyond the last 16, and Moriyasu has been in charge since 2018.
Moriyasu and Japan’s ceiling
Moriyasu is the longest-serving Japan national manager ever, and he has spoken openly about winning the competition. He has also admitted Japan’s World Cup last-16 barrier has become a mental block.
That gap between ambition and history is the core of this campaign. Japan have reached the last 16 four times — in 2002, 2010, 2018 and 2022 — but each run stopped there, often after results that left more on the table.
Japan’s last-16 setbacks
In 2002, Japan topped their group before losing 1-0 to Turkey. Eight years later, they fell to Paraguay on penalties after a stalemate, and in 2018 they threw away a two-goal lead against Belgium at the same stage.
The 2022 run looked different. Japan beat Spain and Germany in the group stage before losing to Croatia, again short of the round that has become their ceiling.
Qualifying runs to Arlington
This team reached the tournament with numbers that back Moriyasu’s optimism. Japan won six out of six matches in the first round of qualifying and seven out of 10 in the second round, losing just once across the two early qualifying rounds.
Since qualifying, they have added six successive friendly wins, including victories over England and Brazil. Those results give Japan a stronger recent record than the one that has defined their World Cup exits, and they arrive in Arlington with a form line that looks different from the teams that previously stalled in the last 16.
The Netherlands will be the first test of whether that depth and confidence can carry through on the biggest stage. For Japan, Sunday is not about protecting a record; it is about finally turning strong group-stage work into a run that goes beyond it.
