FIFA FOOTBALL WORLD CUP QATAR 2022 - NEWS BLOG - UPDATE 1

 Tunisia beats defending champions France at the World Cup

On 30 November (early morning of 1 December, Japan time), Tunisia defeated defending champions France 1-0 in Group D of the first round of the World Cup Qatar. Tunisia had four points with one win, one draw and one loss, but Australia was eliminated from the first round after beating Denmark to earn six points.

Tunisia scored their first goal of the tournament in the second half when Hazri opened the scoring with an individual effort. France had Griezmann hit the net in the closing minutes of the match, but the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) ruled it offside and cancelled it out. Tunisia won the tournament for the first time.

France's complete defeat Griezmann's equalizer is also a phantom with VAR Soccer World Cup

On 30 November (early morning of 1 December, Japan time), defending champions France lost 0-1 to Tunisia in Group D of the first round of the World Cup Qatar.

France appeared to have equalised in the last minute when Griezmann shook the net in added time, but the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) ruled it offside and cancelled it out.

Immediately after the goal, the whistle sounded to announce the end of the match, but after a video review by the referee, the goal was ruled out. It was an unusual situation in which a match that should have ended was resumed.

France had already qualified for the playoffs ahead of their match against Tunisia.

Tunisia beats defending champions France at the World Cup

"J2 pride" Australian Duke dynamism to final T Soccer World Cup

On 30 November, Australia defeated Denmark 1-0 in Group D of the World Cup Qatar to advance to the final tournament for the first time in four tournaments.

There is a J.League player who has made a name for himself at the World Cup. This is Duke, a forward of the Australian national team who belongs to J2 Fagiano Okayama. He is the only J.League player to score a goal in this tournament, and is also described as "the pride of J2". On this day, too, we were involved in the scoring.

If they win, they will advance to the final tournament against Denmark. Duke, who started three games in a row, repeatedly dashed up front and put pressure on the final line. However, the team struggled with the opponents' brilliant passing work. Unable to keep possession of the ball, he opened up a way to play with high-speed counter-attacks.

Around the 15th minute of the second half, when his teammates stole the ball in front of their own goal, Duke, who made a good vertical pass, moved to the left. In the end, Leckie completed the break with a clever dribble shot. They defended this one goal and advanced to the last 16 for the first time in four tournaments. Duke, who was substituted at the end of the game, jumped off the bench and hugged his teammates enthusiastically.

The 31-year-old came to Japan in 2015 and played for J1 Shimizu S-Pulse (J2 in '16) for four seasons. After that, he played for clubs in his home country and Saudi Arabia before joining Okayama in '21. With a 182-centimeter physique, he has a strong heading and dedicated defence from the front line. "The level of the J.League is high, and since coming to Japan, I have been able to work hard and move sharply," he said of his growth.

This season, he scored eight goals in J2 and helped Okayama to third place, the highest ranking in the club's history. "It's great to make history in Okayama and become the first player from that club to play in the World Cup," he said.

In the World Cup, he showed his presence by firing a racy shot in the first match against France, and in the second match against Tunisia, he scored with a clever header to lead the team to victory. The performance showing the letter "J" shown after the goal was not "J. League", but the initials of Jackson.

However, he will never forget to thank his beloved Okayama supporters, saying, "I was really happy to see more and more Australian flags every time the match came." I fully conveyed that feeling on the big stage.

Tears of Takefusa Kubo's Tokyo Olympics Teacher's "unexpected" thoughts World Cup

On 1 December (2 Japan hours, the Japan of the soccer World Cup Qatar will face Spain, a strong team aiming to advance through the first round. Takefusa Kubo (21) = Real Sociedad = who is the youngest player in the Japan national team this time has a deep connection with Spain. Those who have been involved in his growth foreshadow a further leap forward in the tears that Kubo showed.

It's rare to see a player who has attracted so much attention from a young age. He seems to have been steadily improving, but the opposite came out from the person who arrived in Qatar.

"I don't think it was that smooth and I feel like we slipped into the World Cup [with a squad of 26]. I want to be proud of the difficult choices I've made [during this time].