Group B: All eyes on Blue Samurai
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Japan is taking nothing for granted at the Asian Cup after its best-ever World Cup on foreign soil, as Middle East rivals line up to spoil the Blue Samurai's bid to regain the continental title.
Japan bowed to fellow three-time champion Saudi Arabia 3-2 in the 2007 Asian Cup semifinals, failing to lift a third straight title, and now the two giants are grouped together with Jordan and Syria in Qatar.
Despite a run of warm-up defeats, the Blue Samurai reached the World Cup last-16 in South Africa in June.
"We are aiming high as a matter of course," Japan coach Alberto Zaccheroni said, citing the country's World Cup feat and its triumphs in both men's and women's tournaments at the Asian Games in November.
But the former AC Milan boss said: "I expect tremendous battles ahead.
"Australia and South Korea may headline the tournament," he said. "But I feel that teams from the Middle East will be quite formidable as they can fight in conditions quite close to home."
In its opening game on Jan 9, Japan faces Jordan, whom it narrowly defeated 4-3 on penalties in the 2004 Asian Cup quarterfinals before going on to beat host China for the trophy.
Zaccheroni, who had never coached a national team or foreign club before joining Japan, got off to a convincing start after taking over from homegrown World Cup boss Takeshi Okada.
With the 57-year-old Italian in charge for the first time, Japan upset a full-strength Argentina 1-0 at home and fought to a scoreless draw away with cross-strait rival South Korea in friendlies in October.
"Going out with this line-up, we should not fear any opponent," Zaccheroni said as he called up eight Europe-based players, including CSKA Moscow midfielder Keisuke Honda and Borussia Dortmund rookie Shinji Kagawa.
Honda scored in Japan's wins over Cameroon and Denmark at the World Cup. Japan bowed to the Netherlands 1-0 in the other group match and missed a quarterfinal spot by a penalty shootout loss to Paraguay.
Kagawa, 21, has attracted European clubs by scoring eight goals in the first half of the Bundesliga season after moving from J-League side Cerezo Osaka.
"The Asian Cup will be a tournament where we will demonstrate how much we have improved after the World Cup," said Honda, known for his aggressive play and straight-talking.
"Of course, there is only one thing we aim for," said the 24-year-old, who has always vowed to go for the title in any tournament.
Zaccheroni though will be missing World Cup centerbacks Yuji Nakazawa and Marcus Tulio Tanaka through knee injuries, something he called a "great blow".
But Cesena's Yuto Nagatomo, Atsuto Uchida of Schalke and Maya Yoshida of VVV Venlo are ready to guard the Samurai's backline.
"The history of Japanese football won't end at the Asian Cup. I want to use as many young players as possible to prepare well for the 2014 World Cup," said the Italian.
Saudis gunning for another Asian crown
Three-time Asian Cup winner Saudi Arabia believes it is time to end its title drought since 1996, with coach Jose Peseiro hoping to put its World Cup heartbreak behind the team.
Peseiro, who kept his job despite the Saudis failing to qualify for the World Cup for the first time in 20 years, tested new talent and rested his key players at the Gulf Cup, several weeks before the continental showcase.
The Portuguese tactician insisted it was the right decision although home fans criticized him after the Green Falcons lost to Kuwait 1-0 on Dec 5 in the final of the increasingly popular Mideast tournament.
"The Gulf Cup helped us a lot to know the ability of some new players," the 50-year-old coach said.
"I am sure that the Saudi team is going to compete for the title."
At the 2007 Asian Cup, the Saudis were stunned by dark horses Iraq 1-0 in the final after outlasting fellow three-time champion Japan 3-2 in the semifinals.
Captain Yasser Al Qahtani, a key Saudi striker who scored four goals to share the 2007 Asian Cup golden boot, said his team had a "big incentive to get the Asian title back".
"Saudi fans don't accept the runner-up place like the last one. They want no less than the title," said the 28-year-old Al-Hilal forward, nicknamed "Sniper" for his ability to shoot from anywhere with precision.
"We have a lot of young players in the team capable of playing in this big tournament and we are optimistic to win it in Qatar."
Al Ittihad forward Naif Hazazi, who turns 22 during the Asian Cup, boosts the Green Falcons' firepower and has been widely rated as one of the top guns in the Middle East since his international debut two years ago.
Saudi defender Hamad Al Montashari said: "Our group is not easy but I think it will not be tough for us.
"We have big ambitions and our team is favorite," said the 28-year-old veteran, the 2005 Asian Footballer of the Year, who also won the 2004 and 2005 AFC Champions League titles with Al Ittihad.
Peseiro, a Real Madrid assistant coach in 2003, took the Green Falcons' helm in early 2009 in the middle of their losing World Cup qualifying campaign and has enjoyed a wealth of talent to choose from the well-heeled Saudi leagues.
He has also managed numerous clubs since 1992 with mixed results, including Sporting CP of Lisbon.
An advocate of Portuguese-style passing football, he has preferred to put five men in midfield but is likely to put two strikers up front in Qatar.
His tactics paid off in mid-November at home when his squad forged scoreless draws with Ghana, World Cup quarterfinalists, and Uganda.
