Swaggering Japan provide unusual test for Clarke's Scotland
Scotland will be tested to the full in their World Cup warm-up on Saturday, with Japan having been the first nation to qualify, writes Liam McLeod.
Hajime Moriyasu has included Daizen Maeda but not Celtic team-mate Reo Hatate [Getty Images] It would be another six months before Scotland's journey towards ending their World Cup hiatus would even begin, but Japan had already stamped their ticket. On a memorable night in Saitama, head coach Hajime Moriyasu was soaked in all kinds of liquids after a 2-0 win over Bahrain that meant the Japanese became the first non-hosts to make this summer's tournament, their eighth World Cup in succession and a full 15 months before it gets under way. Moriyasu is something of a hero in the Land of the Rising Sun, having masterminded extraordinary come-from-behind victories over four-time winners Germany and 2010 champions Spain during the last tournament in Qatar.
Their campaign ended in penalty heartache against Croatia despite Celtic's Daizen Maeda giving them the lead. But Moriyasu has guided them back to the biggest show of them all with a steely determination in the hope of finally breaking the second-round barrier they have yet to overcome in four previous attempts. You are Scotland head coach Clarke… what would you do?
Scotland's Conway feared World Cup dream was over Key questions for Clarke in Scotland's final pre-World Cup camp Sixteen games, 51 goals and just one defeat Scotland counterpart Steve Clarke wanted a tough test to get his own preparations for the extravaganza underway and he has certainly got that against a team that has lost just five of their 39 post-Qatar fixtures. Japan's seamless qualification campaign included just one defeat - 1-0 to Australia in Perth, with former Dundee United defender Aziz Behich scoring - but that only came after they had done the hard work. They hit 51 goals in their 16 games across the two group stages of Asian qualifying, conceding just three times as they swaggered their way to North America.
A tried and tested 3-4-2-1 system has steered the Japanese along this path and Celtic's Maeda is one of his trusted lieutenants. These moments must provide Moriyasu with a quiet, personal satisfaction, having been part of the side that took part in the "Agony of Doha" match in which he and his team-mates missed out on a spot at a first World Cup in October 1993. They were surprisingly held to a draw by Iraq, which opened the door for their bitter rivals South Korea, who went to the United States in 1994 instead.