Having everything in the world, the Japanese women's team only lacks an Olympic gold medal: How difficult it is...

Japan is the only representative of Asian football, remaining in the knockout round, women's football event of the 2024 Paris Olympics. The Olympic gold medal is also the only major title that Japanese women's football is missing in their massive collection.

The Japanese women's football team won the 2011 World Cup, the 2014 and 2018 Asian Championships, and the 2010, 2018 and 2022 Asian Games. However, the best achievement of the Japanese women's football team at the Olympics was a silver medal in 2012.

The Japanese women's team is the only Asian representative remaining at this Olympics.

Head coach of the Japanese women's team - Mr. Futoshi Ikeda

The Japanese want to win the gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics, to complete their collection of major titles. However, the road to the Olympic title this year for Japanese women's football is too thorny, they have too many big opponents in front of them.

First, in the quarterfinals, the Japanese women's football team had to face the United States, the most successful team in women's football in the world . The United States has won the World Cup 4 times (1991, 1999, 2005 and 2019), won the Olympic gold medal 4 times (1996, 2004, 2008 and 2012), and won the CONCACAF championship 9 times (North, Central America and the Caribbean: 1991, 1993, 1994, 2000, 2002, 2006, 2014, 2018 and 2022).

The Japanese women's team won the Women's World Cup in 2011.

If they make it through the quarter-finals, Japan will face the winner of the match between the world's second most successful team, Germany, or the reigning Olympic champion, Canada. Germany has won the World Cup twice (2003 and 2007), won the Olympic gold medal once (2016), and won the EURO eight times (1989, 1991, 1995, 1997, 2001, 2005, 2009 and 2013).

Canada has won the Olympic gold medal once (2020), and the CONCACAF championship twice (1998, 2010). Notably, at the 2024 Paris Olympics, Canada started the tournament with a deduction of 6 points, but in the end they won all 3 group stage matches, enough points to enter the quarterfinals. This detail shows that the Canadian women's team's will is very strong. If they continue to the semi-finals, Japan will likely face the reigning World Cup champion Spain. The women's team from the land of bullfighting is the strongest team in the remaining bracket, in the knockout round of the women's football event, at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The physicality of Japanese female players does not really have an advantage over their Western opponents.

Both the Japanese men's and women's teams have advanced from the group stage.

Overall, Japan’s path to the gold medal is very difficult. There are no more easy opponents and no more easy matches for them from now until the end of the tournament. Another notable thing is that the matches with difficult opponents follow each other, making it more difficult for the Japanese girls to regulate their physical strength.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/da-co-moi-thu-tren-doi-doi-tuyen-nu-nhat-ban-chi-thieu-hcv-olympic-that-kho-lam-thay-185240801165547773.htm