YOKOHAMA ¨C Japanese soccer fans fell into a funk Sunday after the national team lost its first match of the 2014 World Cup against Cote d¡¯Ivoire, after sports stadiums, bars and clubs across the country opened their doors early Sunday to spectators.
¡°All I can say is that it¡¯s frustrating,¡± said Yohei Shiina, a 24-year-old Yokohama resident who joined the crowd at Nissan Stadium in Yokohama. Stadium officials said 11,773 people showed up to view the soggy, rain-hit match on two huge screens.
The fans erupted in joy when AC Milan midfielder Keisuke Honda scored the first goal in the 16th minute. Cote d¡¯Ivoire came close to scoring several times in the first half, but Japan somehow kept a clean sheet, putting fans in a cheerful mood at the midway point.
But a short while later, after Cote d¡¯Ivoire¡¯s star striker Didier Drogba entered the game in the 62nd minute, an air of nervousness hung over the stadium.
Two minutes later, the crowd fell silent when Cote d¡¯Ivoire striker Wilfried Bony tied the score with a header. The mood only darkened when striker Gervinho scored just two minutes after Bony.
With time running out, many fans stood and eagerly chanted ¡°Nippon,¡± desperately hoping for a leveling goal. When the final whistle sounded, many quickly left the stadium.
Kanagawa Prefecture resident Masaya Matsuoka, 22, said that while it was fun to watch a match in public with other fans for the first time, it was frustrating to see Japan lose. He said Japan didn¡¯t create enough chances to score.
While others praised Honda for scoring first, they also said the team didn¡¯t look good, overall.
Cote d¡¯Ivoire on the other hand did a good job building momentum, so ¡°I was concerned they would eventually score and they did,¡± said Hiroshi Mitsuka, 40, of Yokohama. ¡°Today¡¯s match was disappointing, but I want to believe that if Japan wins the next two, we can advance (to the final 16).¡±
Shiina said a second Japanese goal looked unlikely because the team played too defensively. He said Japan should have attacked more because a shutout was unlikely. He added that he hopes Japan will still advance.
¡°The next match against Greece will be important, as Greece also lost its first match,¡± Shiina said.
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