Makoto Hasebe has called for Japan to show their champions' pedigree and says Samurai Blue's punishing fixture schedule should not be an excuse for slipping up against the United Arab Emirates in the quarterfinals of the Asian Cup.
Japan cruised into the last eight after putting away a poor Jordan side 2-0 in Melbourne on Tuesday night, but Javier Aguirre's men have a day less than UAE to prepare for Friday's clash in Sydney.
Playmaker Keisuke Honda, already fined $5,000 for criticizing the standard of Asian Cup refereeing, took a fresh swipe at tournament organizers after the Jordan game and suggested it was unfair that the schedule had given UAE a vital extra day's rest.