24 Nov 2008(Mon)

November 21, 2008: After a recent J1 game at Nissan Stadium, the TV cameras focused on a banner at the away end.

Held up by a Kyoto Sanga supporter, the banner, in English, read: "Simple is the best way."

After watching Japan beat Qatar 3-0 in Doha on Wednesday night, I am wondering if Takeshi Okada saw the banner, and acted on it -- because that is exactly how Japan got the job done..

In recent times, Japan have managed to make a simple game look incredibly complicated with their intricate moves demanding perfect technique and timing, and their habit of over-elaborating in front of goal.

But in Doha they went back to the basics of football, and this more direct approach brought instant rewards.

Japan were knocking the ball into the channels to utilise the pace of the forwards and keep the Qatar defence on the back foot. Witness the opening goal of Tatsuya Tanaka, who latched on to Uchida's pass and finished smartly.

Japan were shooting on sight, as both Tulio and Tatsuya Tanaka demonstrated before the opening goal. Witness Tamada's superb strike for the second goal, which really knocked the stuffing out of Qatar so early in the second half. How many times have Grampus and Japan fans seen Tamada with the opportunity to shoot on his left foot, only to take an extra touch or try something flashy and waste the chance? This time he did the obvious thing, and shot first time from the edge of the area.

And Japan were crossing the ball into the box, keeping the goalkeeper under pressure. Witness the third goal, a beautiful cross from Shunsuke Nakamura to the far post, where Tulio gobbled up the chance with a straightforward header.

This is what impressed me most about Japan. They played with confidence and control, and kept things simple.

"Simple is the best way" -- and hopefully this will have cleared up a few things in the mind of Okada.

ends