| DATE: June 14 2010 | CITY: Bloemfontein | GROUP: Group E |
The first match of the World Cup in Bloemfontein is between Japan and Cameroon for Group E with both teams hoping to make a good start on their journey to the second round. The two countries have a similar track record in international football with Japan being one of the most successful Asian teams and Cameroon holding the same title for the African continent. Together with Denmark they will have to fight for the second magic ticket that leads to the knock out games with every point in the games between them counting as gold.
Japan has qualified for 4 consecutive World Cups and in 2002 (while co hosting the tournament with South Korea) they managed to reach the round of 16. The team’s goal in South Africa is to try and repeat the success of 2002 securing a position in the second round where games could go either way. Japan is new to football all together and there was no professional league in the country up to 1993. The last 2 decades the sport has seen a tremendous increase in popularity, finally getting the recognition it deserves. Any successful result for the Japanese team will be considered a triumph back home, and any team playing like Japan without stress is very dangerous.
The African Lions of Cameroon have seen a fair amount of success in the World Cup over the years, reaching the quarter-finals in 1990 (the first ever team from Africa to accomplish that). The have played in six tournaments all together, and this year the team looks as strong as ever. Playing in front of an African crown will definitely give them an extra boost, making Cameroon one of the teams to watch in the World Cup. Taking the second qualifying spot of the group is their main target in the competition, and it starts again Japan were they want to have an easy afternoon leaving with the 3 points after the final whistle.