Source: The Sangai Express / Agencies
Rustenburg, June 25 2010:
Japan gave notice of their potential on Thursday when they beat Denmark 3-1 in their final Group E fixture and clinched a place in the last 16 of the World Cup on foreign soil for the first time.
Two well-struck goals from free kicks by Keisuke Honda, after 17 minutes, and Yasuhito Endo, on the half-hour, put them in command before a spirited Denmark revival saw them pull one back through Jon Dahl Tomasson after 81 minutes.
Courageous in defence, slick and inventive in attack, Japan then dazzled again and put the contest beyond doubt with a third goal, beautifully created by Honda for substitute Shinji Okazaki with three minutes remaining.
That made sure of second place behind the Netherlands and confirmed their passage to a well-deserved meeting with Paraguay in Pretoria on Tuesday.
On this form, they could go further.
In Cape Town, the Dutch produced their first goals of flair and finesse to beat Cameroon 2-1 and set up a second-round match with Slovakia.