Iraq beat Indonesia 3-1 in their first group match, a match that showed their high level of skill, fitness, speed and individual technique.
With Japan's reliance on quality wing play, I expect Iraq to focus on not giving their opponents openings between their left and right wingers and defensive midfielders. In the last match against Indonesia, Iraqi players often swapped positions, this time they will need to stop Japanese players from getting behind their own defense. There are a few players in the Iraqi squad who will be crucial in this match, but I think Mohanad Ali's speed and Bayashi's ability to "harden" the ball against the opponents will pose a problem for the Japanese defense.
Japan had a roller coaster ride in the first round of the group stage, but finally managed to win 4-2 against Vietnam, showing their players' ability to create openings between the opposing team's midfield and backfield and score goals. Defensively, there are obviously some things they need to improve on, especially when defending against free kicks. I would like to see Akigo Taniguchi and Hwang Itakura control the defense better. Takumi Minamino scored twice against Vietnam and proved once again that he can be the heart of the team in the middle of the pitch, not only with his good use of the ball, but also with his hard work in defense.
Iraq is a very strong team and I think they may be one of the toughest opponents for Japan in this tournament. However, Japan has an extra day to prepare for this match, and Iraq's defense has some weaknesses, so I think Japan has the ability to gain an advantage by passing the ball, and ultimately win this match.
In the other match on the same day, Vietnam suffered a 2-4 defeat against Japan in the first round of Group D, but there were a lot of good things to take away from the defeat. Vietnam pushed forward and dropped their defense properly for most of the game, but whenever the Japanese players stepped between their midfield and backline to take over, it looked quite messy at times. Indonesia will try to keep their defense solid this time, and I expect Pham Joon Hai to be an important figure in Vietnam's front line, as he will be a source of creativity for the team and try to get behind the opposing defense to create a threat.
Indonesia lost 1-3 to Iraq in their first match. In other words, if they want to qualify for the knockout stage, they must get points in this match. One of the things that Indonesia needs to improve on is that they give their opponents too many chances to counterattack. In their last match against Iraq, they often lost possession in the middle of the midfield whenever they tried to build up an attack. Having said that, Indonesia has shown at times that they are capable of playing at the same level as Vietnam. If they attack aggressively this time, I believe they will be able to score even if Vietnam has more possession time.
