Japanese and Polish soccer fans were left with mixed feelings Friday morning, after Japan's World Cup game against Poland — the last in the tournament's group stage — showcased not only the Samurai Blue's teamwork and fair play but a passive approach that almost had them packing their bags.
The game ended 1-0 to Poland following a solitary goal by defender Jan Bednarek. But despite the defeat Japan advanced to the round of 16 after Colombia won against Senegal in the other Group H game — inspiring wild dancing, with fans jumping for joy and chanting "Nippon, Nippon" after the final whistle. Takumi Okaniwa, 32, who came to watch the match at M-Spo Sports Bar in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward with both teams' jerseys so he could change depending on the results, said he was disappointed the match didn't end with a draw.
"After the first goal (by Poland) I was hoping Japan would at least draw ... But in the end it was Japan's fair play that turned out to be decisive," Okaniwa said, referring to the newly introduced tiebreaker rule, which lets a team with fewer yellow cards advance to the knockout round when two teams in a group end up with the same points, goal difference, goals scored and head-to-head record. Japan had two fewer yellow cards than Senegal, but the teams were matched on other criteria.