27 Mar 2003(Thu)

Japan's third match under head coach Zico is just around the corner, and the Brazilian still has everything to prove.

Even though World Cup legend Pele thinks Zico's experience with Brazil's national team and knowledge of the game should make him a success in the role, I still have my doubts.

Lack of preparation, lack of strategy and lack of tactical discipline characterized Japan's two earlier games under Zico, a 1-1 draw with Jamaica and 2-0 defeat by Argentina.

In the buildup to Friday's friendly against Uruguay at Tokyo's National Stadium, Zico is now talking about the possibility of changing his formation from 4-4-2 to the 3-5-2 favored by his two immediate predecessors, Philippe Troussier and Takeshi Okada.

In a recent Tokyo press conference, Zico said if the players did not feel comfortable with four defenders, he may switch to three.

Clearly Zico is taking his time to lay down his policy, despite the fact the major reason for his appointment by JFA president Saburo Kawabuchi was because he knew the Japanese game and the players so well after so many years with Kashima Antlers.

Japan's strengths are in midfield, and their defenders are mobile and versatile rather than physically robust, so a 3-5-2 system makes more sense to me.

If Zico wants to play his golden quartet in midfield--Hidetoshi Nakata, Shunsuke Nakamura, Shinji Ono and Junichi Inamoto--it is easier to do this with a five-man midfield. These four would be supplemented by Koji Nakata, whose defensive qualities would give the team much more balance.

Nakamura could be on the left, Nakata on the right, where he is playing so well for Parma, with Ono occupying the central role behind the two strikers, who look certain to be Takahara and Suzuki, with Kurobe coming off the bench for his first cap.

Inamoto and Koji Nakata would provide the defensive stability in the center of midfield, with both of them able to join the attack at the right time.

At the back, if Zico plays three defenders it could be Morioka on the right, Miyamoto in the middle and Akita (or Hattori) on the left.

If he plays four back it could look like: Narahashi, Akita, Miyamoto (or Morioka) and Hattori. I would still prefer to have seen Soma brought back at left back, as anyone who watched the A3 Mazda Champions Cup would have seen Soma is in much better condition than Hattori. Soma, too, offers more going forward.

All in all, a 3-5-2 formation suits Japan much more, as there just aren't the orthodox full backs to play 4-4-2.

But I think Zico will persist with 4-4-2 for the time being.

Whatever formation he plays against Uruguay, he needs a good performance and preferably a first victory.

We need to know in which direction Zico's Japan is heading.

Forwards or backwards.

ends