9 Jul 2007(Mon)

July 7, 2007: During the second half of Japan's goalless draw against Colombia on June 5, I felt convinced that Japan were good enough to win the Asian Cup.

After surviving a shaky first half, Japan had come back into it in the second period and were playing some good stuff against the Colombians.

You could sense the unity, the purpose and the goal of the players under Ivica Osim, and they were playing a brand of football that could brush aside Asian opposition.

One month on, the Asian Cup is about to start, and I think Japan will play well.

I am not saying they are going to win it, but I think they will show enough to suggest they are on the right track to qualifying for South Africa 2010 and putting on a good show in the next World Cup; something they did not do in 2006.

Osim, of course, is in a no-win situation in Vietnam, as his two predecessors, Troussier in 2000 and Zico in 2004, both steered Japan to the continental crown.

If Japan do not win for the third time in a row and fourth in all, I hope fans don't start saying Osim is not as good as Troussier or Zico, because this is clearly not the case.

Osim is giving out mixed signals about his targets. On the one hand he says that World Cup qualification is the priority ahead of winning the Asian Cup, but his selection contradicts that theory.

If he had been thinking of the future and not the present, he would have picked more Olympic players in his final 23, such as Honda for the left flank, Ienaga for attacking midfield and Inoha for central midfield/libero. Inoha has since been called up, of course, due to Bando's injury, and he can offer more options for Osim.

Even without Tulio and Mizumoto, a back three of Tsuboi, Abe and Nakazawa is good enough to win the Asian Cup, as is a back four of Kaji, Nakazawa, Abe and Komano. I really liked the Abe-Nakazawa partnership against Colombia, and Inoha is the perfect understudy for Abe at libero or in central midfield and a player who can only benefit from his time with the seniors.

To sum up, I think Japan can win the Asian Cup -- but it will not be the end of the world if they don't, provided there are signs that the Osim method is taking root.

ends