2022 World Cup qualifiers: Qatar a lucky charm for Japan ahead of China clash at Doha

The Japanese national football team are all set to start the final round of their campaign to qualify for the 2022 World Cup with two key games against Oman and China in the upcoming international break. 

While the game against Oman is a home fixture on September 2, they were slated to fly to China to take on the Dragons on September 7. However, travel restrictions in China due to Covid-19 meant the game had to be shifted to Doha, Qatar. The middle-east nation has been an oasis for continental football amidst the pandemic , hosting the AFC Champions League last year and more. 

Interestingly, while China rue the loss of a home advantage, Japan will be quietly glad thanks to their past record in Doha. The Samurai Blue  have always done well in Qatar, especially in the last 10-15 years. In many ways, Japanese football aficionados consider Qatar to be an auspicious land for them in footballing terms. 

It all started back in 2011 with the AFC Asian Cup which was held in Doha. Japan were searching for their fourth Asian Cup title but had a tough challenge on their hands with teams like Australia, South Korea etc looking strong. And the Socceroos , specifically, were a pain for Japan having beaten them in key matches like the 2006 World Cup group stage and then the World Cup qualifiers in 2009.

As fate would have it, Japan would end up playing Australia in the final of the 2011 Asian Cup. And Japan would beat them in a landmark result, with Tadanari Lee scoring the winner in extra-time. The significance of that result was that Japan have never lost to Australia since that game at the Khalifa International Stadium. The two teams have met seven times since and Japan have won four and drawn three. Many consider that final to be the turning point in the rivalry between Japan and Australia, shifting the upper-hand in Japan's favour.

Then there was the 2016 AFC U23 Championship which was also held in Qatar. For Japan, it turned out to be another memorable Qatar trip, with Makoto Teguramori's men winning the title with a perfect record, winning all their games. In the final, they defeated a strong South Korean side 3-2 with Takuma Asano, who currently plays for VFL Bochum in the Bundesliga, scoring a brace. 

And many of the stars in the current Japanese team will have these memories fresh in their minds, having been a part of the two aforementioned squads. The most prominent among those who won the U23 Asian title in 2016 would be Liverpool's Takumi Minamino who is expected to be a key figure in Japan's squads for the third round of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers.

Others in the Japanese national team fray from the 2016 team are Asano, a forward, FC Stuttgart midfielder Wataru Endo, Naomichi Ueda (Nimes defender), Shoya Nakajima (contracted to Porto) and Musashi Suzuki (Beerschot VA). There could also be representatives from the 2011 Asian Cup title winning squad too. Maya Yoshida (Sampdoria defender) and Yuto Nagatomo (played for Marseille last season) also were part of the Japan team in the second round of the qualifiers. 

Japan, who enjoyed a memorable campaign in the 2018 World Cup where they reached the Round of 16 and almost pulled off a win over Belgium, will be looking to go one better in the 2022 World Cup, given that it is being held in Doha - a lucky city for them. And what better way to start their campaign to book a World Cup ticket to Doha with a winning start against Oman and China.