Juricic and Ivankovic give Final views

ASIANCUP2004 - Having seen both their teams go face to face with Asian Cup 2004 finalists China and Japan during the course of the tournament, FootballAsia.com spoke to Croatian coaches Srecko Juricic of Bahrain and Branko Ivankovic of Iran to give their views and predictions of Saturday’s final.

Iran coach Branko Ivankovic 
"This is going to be a very interesting match especially with the way Chinese fans have treated Japan in previous matches. I don't think this will make too much of a difference to Japan during the match as they are more experienced and likely more confident than China. However, they've had a hard route to the final and obviously will feel the effects of injuries and Yasuhito Endo's suspension. 

"I think Shunsuke Nakamura is the driving force of the team and he is definitely the key player for Japan. Keiji Tamada is another player to watch and although Takayuki Suzuki has not been very effective, he can still be a dangerous player. Alessandro Santos is also dangerous going forwards."

"Shao Jiayi is the key man for China and he has really come good in this tournament after a long struggle with injuries. Yan Song will be the key man in midfield while Hao Haidong and Li Jinyu will look to unlock the Japanese defence. Zheng Zhi has also had a very good tournament in defence and seems to be their man for penalties as well." 

"China have a great chance to win this on home soil in front of their own fans and I think they will grasp this opportunity with both hands. China have the ability to beat any team in Asia and having beaten Iran despite having a poor history of results against us they will be looking forward to continue their run."

Verdict: China Win


Bahrain coach Srecko Juricic 
"Both teams favour different formations, China favours the 4-4-2 formation while Japan alternate between 3-4-1-2 and 3-5-1. China are very compact in defence because they defend with the entire team. They like to take their time in building up to attack with a lot of passing play. However, this can sometimes backfire as it gives the opponents time to close the way into the box. 

"China has a few exciting players but I think Shao Jiayi will be the key man. The other players to watch out for would be Yan Song, Sun Jihai and Zheng Zhi. It would be important for China to have Hao Haidong playing as he is the talisman for the team and the fans. He is past his prime as a player but having him in the side will be a psychological boost for the Chinese team as he is a natural leader.

"The Japanese are all technically and tactically skilled and every player knows his position on the field. When they attack, it is usually with three or four players and they never commit too many as they are very patient. 

"It is very difficult to point out any particular player in the Japan team because they are all equally good. Shunsuke Nakamura is of course one of the best players in this tournament and they've also got Takayuki Suzuki and Keiji Tamada on the attack. 

"I don't think the partisan crowd will have that much of an effect on the Japan team as they are all very professional. They faced hostile fans in Chongqing and Jinan but have made their way to the final so the crowd will not be an issue. However, China are playing at home and they will be all fired up for this."