Japan's fairytale in the World Cup 2022 came to a crashing end on last Monday as the Samurai Blues lost against Croatia on penalties after a 1-1 draw in 120 minutes. Hajime Moriyasu's Japan side had a World Cup campaign to be proud of as they defeated both Germany and Spain in group stage to top their group and sent four-time world champions Germany home from the group stage. However, they could not keep their nerves against Croatia during penalties and missed three spot kicks.

Japan's World Cup campaign has been one of the most exciting stories in the World Cup so far and every Asian must be proud of them. Here, we will take a look at their wonderful World Cup campaign.

Hajime Moriyasu deserves plenty of plaudits-

Hajime Moriyasu has been one of the most impressive managers in the World Cup so far. It is because of his tactical acumen that Japan have progressed so much in the last four years after his takeover. Moriyasu's tactical tweaks and man-management has caught the eye. The Japan manager has also been brilliant with his substitution decisions which have often changed the games in their favour.

Japan's high-pressing game has been a nightmare for their opponents-

Germany and Spain are both known for their patient style of play as they love to keep possession of the ball and create openings with short passes. Japan's high-pressing style of play was really effective against both of them as they defeated two of the biggest forces in European and world football. They did really well against Croatia as well but could not defeat the runners-up of the 2018 World Cup on penalties.

It will be a learning experience for Japan-

Japan have been working really hard on building a solid infrastructure for football over more than two decades and it is becoming more and more evident that they are on the right track. They are slowly but surely becoming a force in world football. Their experience in this World Cup will go a long way to ensure that they work on their shortcomings and come back even stronger.