soccer

Japan soccer coach Halilhodzic fired two months before World Cup

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26 Comments
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Damn.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

I believe Alan Pardew is available!

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Halil-Japan was performing terribly - I guess this was inevitable.

I wonder if Guus Hiddink is available for a short-term gig? He did the same for Australia in 2006, and got the Socceroos to the 2nd round. I highly doubt he, or anyone, could achieve that here, though.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Not a fan of late sackings like this ( i mean late in the season at club level or just before a major event such as WC). JFA certainly lacking class.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

Hiddink? Would be interesting, didnt he also manage to get SouthKorea to the quarter finals? But two months wouldn't be enough time. He would fail and then get slaughtered in the media.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

kohakuebisuToday 08:56 am JST

I believe Alan Pardew is available!

Haha! The man for any job.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

This is classic Japanese reasoning. He will be replaced by a Japanese coach for sure. If they fail, they blame the previous foreigner. If they win, it is because of the Japanese Gambare spirit. Seen it all before.

6 ( +9 / -3 )

He got a mediocre team into the world cup final, which is quite an achievement, so I think he should have been given the chance to manage the team through the tournament. Japan were dire against Mali and the Ukraine, but an important role of such friendly games is to find what works and what doesn't before important matches.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

you tied Mali? ouch

-3 ( +0 / -3 )

Sam Allardyce should be available soon.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Bring back Okada!!!

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

I totally agree with the firing of Hallilhodzic,  he was absolutely lucky to scrape through the qualifiers.

And ridiculous decisions to play Mali and Ukraine , and play them in Belgium.  And not calling up a number of the Japanese players, working in Europe. 

For once, a brave and correct decision from JFA to be applauded, depending of course on whom they are going to call in to replace him.  They need a foreign coach, not Japanese, they can not perform on such short notice. And they need one with name, to get the respect quickly from the players. 

Half of the job is done in the correct way by JFA, now the other half

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

I wonder if they will choose Makoto Teguramori as the new coach. He had success with the under 23 program winning the  Asian U-23 tournament in 2016. Might as well give him a shot!

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Good riddance. Get a Japanese coach. Actually all national teams should only have coaches that are citizens of the nation in question.

0 ( +4 / -4 )

Actually all national teams should only have coaches that are citizens of the nation in question.

Nonsense. Nations that are developing in a sport, or want a different style, often need coaching that only comes from abroad.

1 ( +4 / -3 )

Reckless - he usually has a similar expression - particularly when watching the Japanese team play football!

4 ( +4 / -0 )

Great, and now this is perfect for the Japan team, because giving him only two to three months to prepare for World Cup means they can blame the losses on him -- we all know the team will never change themselves.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Japan with or without dismissed Halilhodzic or being replaced to a best Japanese head coach. it will be very difficult to go up the tournament of best 16. Group H Colombia and Poland probably go to final but Japan and Senegal not really competitive to be a dark-horse...

0 ( +0 / -0 )

but Japan and Senegal not really competitive to be a dark-horse...

Senegal looked very handy in qualifying. They were one of the sides from the third bowl everyone wanted to avoid.

The bookies see Japan as finishing bottom of that group. Looks an even better bet now.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

From other reports, this sounds like player power. They've moaned and the FA head has sided with them. I get the impression Japanese now see WC qualification as a divine right, so he'll get no credit for having achieved that. Japan even finished top of their group, something South Korea - with Son Heung-min, a genuine world-class forward - could not manage.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

robert maesToday 12:16 pm JST

I totally agree with the firing of Hallilhodzic, he was absolutely lucky to scrape through the qualifiers.

And ridiculous decisions to play Mali and Ukraine , and play them in Belgium. And not calling up a number of the Japanese players, working in Europe. "

Actually you do not know much about football. Teams try to play competitive teams with similar qualities in a similar group to their world cup pool. Mali is a solid squah and could be a proxy for Senegal, while Ukraine could be a proxy for Poland. Playing in Belgium is a simulation of what to expect in Russia. Therefore the strategy was sound, the execution was flawed, due to inferior players. It is a wake up call that Asian football is not quite up to world level yet.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

Probably not his fault, but they have to change up something so I can't blame the decision.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

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