Brighton keen on Tau
Japan end woeful run, Lewandowski shines for Poland
MOSCOW: Japan claimed their first victory of the year yesterday, coming from behind to beat Paraguay 4-2 to boost sagging morale a week before their opening World Cup Group H match against Colombia.
It was The Blue Samurai’s first win under coach Akira Nishino, who had lost friendlies against Ghana and Switzerland since taking over in April.
Japan, one of the most successful Asian teams, having qualified for the World Cup for a sixth consecutive time, scored four times despite managing only three shots against Paraguay, who failed to reach the World Cup finals.
Takashi Inui set up the victory at the Tivoli-Neu Stadium in the Austrian city of Innsbruck with two second-half goals, both assisted by Shinji Kagawa. Paraguay’s Federico Santander scored an own goal and Kagawa put the result beyond doubt with a stoppage-time effort.
“We held our shape in defence and contained them, and that was a concern for us, but you need balance as well,” Nishino said after his team ended a five-match winless streak, stretching back to December.
“You need to break down your opponents and we finally did that in the second half.
“Inui has a talent for dribbling in the box and I want more of that from him. We saw that with his second-half goals.”
Fellow Group H side Poland ended their World Cup warm-up fixtures on a high with a 4-0 win over Lithuania as striker Robert Lewandowski netted twice in the first half.
The 29-year-old skipper took his tally to 55 international goals and also scored for the 36th time in 37 Poland games under coach Adam Nawalka.
Dawid Kownacki and Jakub Blaszczykowski were also on target for the Poles at Stadion Narodowy in Warsaw.
Poland begin their Group H campaign in Moscow against Senegal next Tuesday.
There was some good news for Belgium with coach Roberto Martinez playing down fitness concerns over Eden Hazard after the skipper limped out of their final World Cup warm-up match against Costa Rica on Monday.
“Eden is okay, he had a little trouble, but it’s nothing to worry about,” Martinez said.
World soccer’s governing body Fifa announced that Argentinian referee Nestor Pitana will take charge of tomrrow’s opening World Cup match between hosts Russia and Saudi Arabia in Moscow. – Reuters ENGLISH Premier League club Brighton & Hove Albion are reportedly eyeing out Mamelodi Sundowns sensation Percy Tau.
Tau’s future has been the subject of much speculation after a breath-taking season from the 24-year-old in which he scored 13 goals and provided 13 assists for Masandawana.
He has also become Bafana Bafana’s go-to man up front and has already notched five goals in nine internationals for South Africa.
While it looks a near certainty that Tau will depart the PSL for Europe, there has been little clarity to which country he will be headed, with opinion split as to whether he will be able to handle the physicality of playing in England.
That’s perhaps a little unfair on the player – despite his diminutive stature, Tau has shown when playing against some of the PSL’s most rugged defenders, not to mention some tough customers in continental and international competition, that he can hold his own.
According to the Brighton-based publication The Argus, the Chris Hughton-coached team have the 2017/18 PSL Player of the Season on their radar, stating:
“The Argus can confirm the Seagulls are tracking Mamelodi Sundowns forward Percy Tau, who was recently named top man in his domestic competition.
“While no bid has been made, Albion remain interested in the South Africa international who also scooped Players’ Player of the Year honours recently in the top flight.”
Brighton were promoted to the top flight at the end of the 2016/17 season and finished last term in 15th spot, seven points clear of the drop zone.
Glen Murray top scored with 12 league goals for the Seagulls, with Jose Izquierdo coming in next with five goals, the club scoring only 34 goals in 38 league matches, the fourth worst record in the Premiership. – African News Agency (ANA)