World Cup 2026: Could Japan be the dark horse?

It’s not just Yoshidai who has set the bar high for Japan.

Earlier this year, Moriyasu said he wanted to lead Japan to World Cup glory this summer.

“My goal is to make the team one of the best,” Moriasu told World Soccer magazine ahead of the tournament. “We have raised our level bit by bit through our national team activities.

“The job for me is to bring out the best in the players. We’ve had a lot of injuries but we’ve also proved that we have the squad to give the best to whoever plays.”

It’s no wonder players who include Crystal Palace’s Daichi Kamada and Leeds United’s Ao Tanaka have so much faith in the 57-year-old.

They helped Japan become the first non-host nation to secure their place in this summer’s finals after a near-perfect qualifying campaign.

“Of Qatar’s 26 players, 19 were in their first World Cup,” added Moriyasu. “They’ve been the core of our team for the Asian qualifiers this time – and they’ve been aiming high from the start.

“They have their sights set on winning the World Cup this time around, and have the mindset to keep improving to that end.”

But it is not only the Asian qualifiers that Japan has impressed. Since their elimination from the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, they have beaten two of Europe’s highest-ranked teams – England and Germany – as well as Brazil.

Yoshida believes Japan’s ability to compete with some of FIFA’s top nations is driven by the growing number of players regularly appearing in Europe’s top five leagues.

“Obviously, more players play in Europe now, especially in high-level European competitions,” said Yoshida, who was capped 127 times.

“In the beginning, I was at VVV Venlo, a lower Dutch league team, which was very good for me as a first step, but now times have changed. Japanese players have a lot of reputation.

“So now, (a) on a daily basis or a weekly basis, every player plays with or against World Cup level players.

“That experience is a huge difference. That’s the main thing for me. But let’s not forget that that road was started by older players like (Shunsuke) Nakamura, (Hidetoshi) Nakata, Shinji Ono.

“These guys are opening the door and our generation is starting to go and now the door is wider.”