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A thread asking “why doesn’t this guy get more credit?” about Japan national team manager Moriyasu Hajime popped up on 5ch’s Nandemo Jikkyo G board. Under Moriyasu, Japan have gone unbeaten in official matches against European sides, knocked out Germany and Spain at the 2022 World Cup, and climbed from 56th to 17th in the FIFA rankings since he took over. Even so, posters kept pointing to Japan’s lack of an Asian Cup title and their repeated Round-of-16 exits at the World Cup as reasons the credit hasn’t followed, and the thread descended into arguing over whether “being strong in friendlies” actually means anything, and whether a manager who “can’t even top Asia” deserves to be called great.
What people said
・Beat Germany and Spain at the World Cup
・Even in friendlies, beat Germany and England — and beat Brazil twice
Also there's something about the way he carries himself that creeps me out.
Those two things alone make me dislike him as a manager.
I dislike him regardless of what the public thinks.
Glad that settles it.
But if you ask whether I trust your tactical judgment — some random amateur — or Moriyasu's, the answer's pretty obvious.
Like batting average with runners in scoring position in baseball — probably just running low on variance, though I don't really know.
If it's been running low for 8 straight years, that's not variance anymore, that's a real problem.
It's common sense that official competitions matter more than friendlies.
Besides, it's a tournament you can't afford to drop if you want a good seeding pot anyway.
Japan has the best World Cup record of any Asian country, though?
If Japan wants to climb the FIFA rankings, winning the Asian Cup is basically mandatory.
The coefficients are different.
Don't dodge the point, you coward.
What were Qatar's World Cup results — the team that won back-to-back Asian Cups?
Go ahead, write it down.
Does the Asian Cup even mean anything?
Japan's FIFA ranking right after Moriyasu took over: 56th.
Japan's current FIFA ranking: 17th.
Guess that makes him a great manager after all.
Now the squad's supposedly more stacked with top-level talent than back then, and still no titles.
So what?
Japan is unquestionably the strongest team in Asia.
What were Qatar's World Cup results — the team that won back-to-back Asian Cups?
Guess that figures.
Japan has the best World Cup record of any Asian team over the last five tournaments.
What about Qatar, who won back-to-back Asian Cups?
What about South Korea?
People aren't bothering to argue because you're missing the point.
You go silent on World Cup results and then start screaming "but the Asian Cup!"
It's "Moriyasu—" (with a dash, as a joke on how his name 森保一/Hajime gets misread).
And of course you can't reason with someone who brags about the Round of 16 while refusing to admit that's not good enough.
Be specific.
Who exactly are these "opponents they should beat every time"?
And what are those opponents' own World Cup results?
Write it down.
Don't dodge.
Answer the question.
The opponents they should beat every time.
Those opponents' World Cup results.
Hurry up and write it down.
What were Qatar's World Cup results — the team that won back-to-back Asian Cups?
Funny how nobody will answer that question.
It means it's a meltdown routine even the NanJ crowd won't engage with.
My second post already had the answer.
You'd think "zero titles," but they've actually won the Kirin Cup and some other obscure thing.
Unlike baseball, soccer isn't just about results.
Is there any country besides Japan that's satisfied being strong only in friendlies while failing at both the World Cup and the continental championship?
With three host-nation slots going to teams of questionable strength, the bracket ends up pretty unfair depending on which group you land in.
Having your only other option besides Brazil be France or Morocco is brutal.
The moment you land in that group, it's basically over.
Treating winning as some kind of obligation misses the point.
A player's real battlefield is raising their club's standing in their domestic league.
Then doesn't the national team manager not really matter at all?
Each player could just go do their best at their club.
No tactical coaching involved.
People say this a lot, but is it actually true?
That applies to Brazil just as much, though.
Background and Key Points of the Debate
Since taking over in 2018, manager Moriyasu Hajime has posted an extraordinary unbeaten record in official matches against European sides, including wins over Germany and Spain, and has lifted Japan’s FIFA ranking from 56th at his appointment to 17th today. On the other hand, the biggest reason his managerial reputation hasn’t kept pace is Japan’s failure to win the Asian Cup — they lost to Qatar in the 2023 final — and their continued inability to break past the Round of 16 at the World Cup. The clash within the thread pits those who argue “beating higher-ranked teams in friendlies and at the World Cup itself is what has real value” against those who say “you can’t rate him highly if he can’t even top Asia,” and both sides have some grounding. Because the FIFA ranking formula weights official-match results heavily, it’s a common misunderstanding that Japan’s rise can be chalked up to friendlies alone.
※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Nandemo Jikkyo G) thread “[Mystery] Why Manager Moriyasu Just Isn’t Getting the Credit He Deserves.”
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