Saturday, 21 June 2014 00:00
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NATAL, Brazil (Reuters): A desperate rearguard action from 10-man Greece held Japan to a 0-0 draw that suited neither side in a match which ended with boos ringing around the Dunas arena and sent Colombia into the last 16 of the World Cup on Thursday.
Both sides were looking to get their campaigns back on track after losing their opening encounters and Greece will be the happier after playing for 52 minutes without skipper Kostas Katsouranis, who was sent off for two yellow card offences.
Japan dominated possession but was unable to make the most of the chances they created against a Greek defence which once again looked like the one that conceded four goals in 10 qualifying matches for Brazil.
“We tried to attack. We had to play our match. We couldn’t settle for a draw. This is not a positive result. We absolutely needed to win,” said Japan coach Alberto Zaccheroni, whose side opened their campaign with a 2-1 loss to Ivory Coast.
“We lacked ideas for the final ball. We did a lot of good things but we really lacked speed.”
The Asian champions stayed true to the attacking style that made them the first country to qualify for Brazil but will now need to beat Colombia in their final match to have a chance of reaching the knockout stages for a third time.
Greece, who lost their opener 3-0 to Colombia, have never been past the group stage at a World Cup but victory over Ivory Coast could still get them through to the last 16.
“We were good in terms of determination, courage and defence but we weren’t able to counter-attack,” said Greece coach Fernando Santos.
“Without the red card we probably could have won the game.”
Colombia top Group C with six points from their first two games ahead of Ivory Coast with three. Japan faces the Colombians on Tuesday in Cuiaba, when Greece meets the African team in Fortaleza.
