Japan 0-0 Spain LIVE: Luis Enrique’s side look to secure top spot in Group E… but Hajime Moriyasu’s team need a win to ensure last-16 spot ahead of Germany and Costa Rica

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Follow Sportsmail’s live blog for the World Cup Group E clash between Japan and Spain. 

Host commentator

10min: Alvaro Morata plants a near post header from a quality ball in from the left by Dani Olmo but that’s easy for Shuichi Gonda.

I don’t get this “he’s caught it too well” rhetoric. It wasn’t close to going in… and he was offside. Stop this. 

8min: Now Busquets almost COSTS Spain as he’s loose in possession on the edge of his own box and after a bit of pinball in the area, Unai Simon is relieved to see a right-sided effort from Junya Ito smash the side netting

7min: Nico Williams makes a dart down the right after a clever pick out by Gavi. His cross is then inches away from Dani Olmo.

It breaks out to the edge of the area but Sergio Busquets can only fire over. 

Both keepers yet to be properly tested. 

5min: Commentator has got confused between Ghana’s Inaki Williams and his brother Nico, who plays for Spain. Can confirm Nico is playing, not Inaki, for Luis Enrique’s side. 

First chance for Japan as Takefusa Kubo bursts down the right, gets in behind Alejandro Balde, but the cut-back is… cut-out. Let off for Spain.

2min: Spain in red, Japan in blue, and it’s a beautiful sight out there in contrast to the green, green grass of the Khalifa International Stadium.

It looks like a back five for Japan so they seem to be keen to keep it tight as long as possible. 

A tried and tested 4-3-3 for Spain and it is they who has started more confidently in possession. A cross wide right from teenage superstar Gavi is too long for Dani Olmo though…

Vamos, as they’d say in Spain.

We’re underway. Big 90 minutes ahead.

Players lined up in the tunnel and are ready to head out.

I’ll tell you what, the 5K quality cameras they are using in the tunnels are absolutely brilliant.

Here they come, then. Moments away from kick-off.

All to play for – and both know a win secures top spot!

Lots of twists and turns to come throughout the evening with everything to play for in Group E

Japan: Gonda, Itakura, Yoshida, Taniguchi, Junya Ito, Morita, Tanaka, Nagatomo, Kamada, Maeda, Kubo.

Subs: Kawashima, Yamane, Endo, Shibasaki, Doan, Mitoma, Minamino, Tomiyasu, Asano, Sakai, Machino, Ueda, Schmidt, Soma, Hiroki Ito.

Spain: Simon, Azpilicueta, Rodri, Pau Torres, Balde, Gavi, Busquets, Gonzalez, Williams, Morata, Olmo.

Subs: Sanchez, Garcia, Llorente, Koke, Asensio, Ferran Torres, Raya, Guillamon, Pino, Jordi Alba, Carlos Soler, Carvajal, Sarabia, Laporte, Fati.

Referee: Victor Gomes (South Africa)

Incredible atmosphere in the stands and there is still 20 minutes until kick-off!

That end full of Japanese fans is absolutely bouncing, full of banners and tifos for their players. 

Looking forward to this one. 

Meanwhile, both sets of players are continuing their warm-ups before they go back in for their final instructions. 

Spain will begin their game against Japan with their youngest starting XI in a #FIFAWorldCup match since their 2006 round of 16 exit to France.

Those two starting XI's compared… which is better? ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/LfrwKxNAYH

Lots of praise at the moment for Sergio Busquets in the middle of Spain’s midfield. 

He’s the elder statesman, flanked by Gavi and Pedri, and Gary Neville is waxing lyrical, calling Busquets the ‘conductor’.

Word of warning though, pick up a booking tonight and Busquets will be suspended for the last-16 if Spain go through. 

I’ve got a lot of time for this. 

Total commitment to the costumes. 

Both sets of players going through the motions in their warm-ups now.

Kick-off is closing in at the Khalifa International stadium…

PERMUTATIONS REMINDER

The state of play… and what needs to happen for each team in Group E to progress.

READ IT ALL BELOW.

Spain’s players and coaches are looking suave as they arrive at the Khalifa International Stadium.

Less than an hour now until kick-off!

Japan XI vs SPAIN (4-2-3-1): Gonda; Taniguchi, Yoshida, Itakura, Nagatomo; Morita, Ito; Tanaka, Kamada, Kubo; Maeda.

Make that FIVE changes for Japan as well, with Shogo Taniguchi, Junya Ito, Ao Tanaka, Takefusa Kubo and Daizen Maeda in from the start

Can confirm I do not possess the ability to pull off three-quarter trousers. A crying shame.

Meanwhile, Japan team news is due imminently. 

SPAIN XI vs JAPAN (4-3-3): Unai Simón; Azpilicueta, Rodri, Pau Torres, Balde; Gavi, Busquets, Pedri; Nico Williams, Morata, Dani Olmo

So that’s FIVE changes from the side that drew 1-1 with Germany as Jordi Alba, Aymeric Laporte, Dani Carvajal, Marco Asensio and Ferran Torres drop out

Belgium’s Golden – or should we say Olden – Generation are out as Croatia ground out a 0-0 draw to reach the last-16.

They will now follow Group E with added interest as they await the group winners in the last-16.

FULL MATCH REPORT BELOW. 

Win tonight and they are through as group winners – it’s as simple as that for Japan

HUGE CELEBRATIONS IN GROUP F

Morocco are through as GROUP F WINNERS… meaning they await the runner-up in Group E.

The African side will be glued to events this evening, no doubt.

READ THE FULL MATCH REPORT BELOW.

It’s hard not to love Spain’s kit… the classic red and yellow.

Well, those shirts have been pressed and hung up inside the dressing room ready for Luis Enrique’s side. 

‘I’m NOT a football addict. I don’t like watching matches!’

Unlike the rest of us, Spain’s Aymeric Laporte isn’t glued to his TV screen to keep track of results and matches out in Qatar.

The Man City star is part of Spain’s World Cup bid, playing both their 7-0 thrashing of Costa Rica and their 1-1 draw with Germany.

Laporte is so detatched from it all he doesn’t even know kick-off times of games – that goes for club and country – and his interests lay far away from the football pitch.

FULL STORY HERE.

Everything is all laid out for Japan’s players inside the Khalifa International Stadium.

Team news won’t be too far away now.

So, the key question, who needs what in Group E to progress…

+ Simply put – Japan progress with a win. Should they draw, Spain are through but Japan would need to hope Costa Rica don’t win and or Germany don’t win, as well as the Germans bettering their goal difference

+ Spain are almost certainly through – but if they lose to Japan and Costa Rica beat Germany they will be out

+ A shock win would take Costa Rica through – and the Central America side could even progress with a draw if Spain defeat Japan

+ Germany need to win, hope Spain beat Japan and they must better Japan’s goal difference, which is currently two better off

Capacity: 45,416 Distance from Doha city centre: 8 miles 

This was one of the only stadiums to have been opened before the World Cup was awarded to Qatar, with it initially built in 1976. It also hosted the Emir Cup final in May last year in front of 40,000 spectators.

It has been the country’s national stadium since it opened and has been extensively renovated to host the World Cup.

It has previously hosted the Asian Games, the Gulf Cup and the AFC Asian Cup and hosted the IAAF World Athletics Championships in 2019. 

England played Brazil here in an international friendly back in 2009 while Liverpool won the FIFA Club World Cup at this venue 10 years later.

The early live action surrounds Group F – and here is how it stands:

CROATIA 0-0 BELGIUM

CANADA 1-2 MOROCCO

One of the tournament’s breakout stars

Spain coach Luis Enrique has claimed that midfield star Gavi can go and ‘define an era’ after the 18-year-old’s impressive World Cup so far.  

Barcelona’s teen product became the third youngest goalscorer in World Cup history, behind Pele and Manuel Rosas, during Spain’s 7-0 drubbing of Costa Rica and he also started in the grudge match with Germany.

Enrique’s decision to call Gavi up for national duty in October last year raised some eyebrows, especially as it came just two months after his Barca debut, but the Spaniard now feels justified as the midfielder continues to shine on the biggest stage. 

FULL STORY HERE.

We are here to win seven matches and become champions, so we need to reach the round of 16.

Regardless of who we face in the next round, we must first win against Japan. We are not thinking about finishing second. We want to finish first.

To win a World Cup you have to beat everyone that comes your way. If there is anything I have to say about Japan it is that they are very dynamic, so quick.

They put you under so much pressure and don’t give you time to think. We won’t have time to implement our style.

They have so many good players like (Daichi) Kamada, (Ao) Tanaka, (Wataru) Endo, (Takefusa) Kubo, and (Takumi) Minamino. They have a lot of players at a high level.

Over the last three days we have prepared well as a team for the match against Spain. Considering the magnitude of this match, I am sure the players will be under a lot of pressure, but I want them to have faith in themselves and each other.

If we can give 100% of our usual effort, good results should follow, so I want the players to give it their all.

Under Luis Enrique, Spain has a great team that has everything – dynamism, technique, and tactics – and shares a consistent football philosophy as a country, from the development age to the senior national team.

Many of the players on their team have also competed in the Olympics. Losing to Spain in the semi-finals of the Tokyo Olympics was a very frustrating and disappointing memory, but the players and I are here with the promise to make the most of that experience. This time we will aim to obtain a result that we can celebrate.

We are not feeling any pressure. If there is, it is over whether we can play to our strengths without regret, but we are fully focused on fighting our way through the group stage. We must savour the occasion and the thrill of going head-to-head with the World Cup champions.

We will fight to the end as a team so that we can deliver results that will please all our supporters, so we ask for your support and cooperation. We are in the world of competition, so it is only natural that we are praised when we win and criticised when we lose, and I am glad that we are able to provoke interest in and discussion about football.

As representatives of Japan, we will fight for Japan on the world stage with the spirit and pride of the Japanese people.

… we’re almost CERTAIN to see this, though!

A trip to Japan recently only confirmed what many had said previously – the people of Japan are some of the most welcoming and most respectable in the world.

That is being broadcast to the masses in Qatar with their wide-scale clean-ups after matches.

If only all fans in Qatar were more like Japan’s…

FULL STORY BELOW.

Can we expect more Origami this evening?

The handiwork with paper in the dressing room went viral after their comeback win against Germany in the first round of games. 

More Origami magic due this evening, do we think?

Luis Enrique could STEP DOWN as Spain boss after World Cup

PETE JENSON IN SPAIN: Spain coach Luis Enrique looks increasingly likely to leave the job to go back to club management at the end of the World Cup, after the president of the Spanish Football Federation said his manager had already turned down a huge offer from the Premier League once before.

The 52-year-old former Barcelona and Roma coach has given his world to Federation president Luis Rubiales that he will sit down with him as soon as the World Cup ends. Rubiales told Cadena Ser that a decision should be made in January by the latest.

FULL STORY BELOW. 

So, here’s how Group E stands heading into the final round of matches – and here’s how we got there.

Germany 1-2 Japan

Spain 7-0 Costa Rica

Japan 0-1 Costa Rica

Spain 1-1 Germany

Don’t say this World Cup isn’t serving up drama!

Hello and welcome to live coverage of Japan’s final group game match-up with Spain, with both sides holding out hope of winning Group E and progressing into the knockout stages.

All four teams in Group E – including Costa Rica and Germany in the other game – can still progress and so getting a result this evening is vital for all of them.

Spain go into this match top of the standings with four points while Japan are second, with three points from a possible six.

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