Kamada equaliser sets up massive Tunisia clash

Tunisia on Saturday, and it's already massive

Japan face Tunisia in Group F on Saturday, June 21, at 06:00 (1). The stakes are clear: after the 2–2 draw with the Netherlands, three points here puts Japan in real control of the group.

Hervé Renard's Tunisia side will not roll over. The preview from JuveFC flags Daichi Kamada and Keito Nakamura as Japan's key attacking threats, with Hajime Moriyasu likely to keep the same shape that frustrated the Dutch (3). Tunisia will sit deep and look to counter, exactly the kind of test Japan struggled with before this tournament. Patience wins it.

The Netherlands draw was no fluke

Japan took a point off the Netherlands in the World Cup opener, and nobody is calling it luck. Netherlands 2–2 Japan (2) (4). Kamada's late equaliser forced Ronald Koeman into defensive substitutions, a move the Dutch press tore apart afterwards (2). Virgil van Dijk then criticised the new drink breaks, a detail that tells you how little control the Netherlands had over the tempo. Japan dictated the conditions of that match, not the other way around.

Fan-reaktioner

Japanese fans are still dining out on that Spain stat from 2022. One Reddit user resurfaced it this week: 18% possession against Spain in Qatar, and Japan won 2–1 (1). It set a World Cup record for the lowest possession by a winning team since 1966. The post reads like a warning to anyone still underestimating this side, controlling the ball is not the same as controlling the game.

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