Japan v Croatia, 18 June 2006
| Score | 0-0 |
| Referee | Frank De Bleeckere |
| Competition | FIFA World Cup Finals group F |
| Venue | Frankenstadion, Nuremberg |
| Attendance | 41,000 |
View Japan v Croatia head to head
Kick-Off: 15:00 Local (1:00 BST)
Assistant referees:
Peter Hermans (Belgium)
Walter Vromans (Belgium)
Fourth official:
Kevin Stott (United States)
Fifth official:
Gregory Barkey (United States)
0Man of the Match:
Hidetoshi Nakata (Japan)
A penalty save from Japan's Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi denied Croatia victory, with a goalless draw not doing much to help either side's hopes of progression.
Goalkeeper Kawaguchi palmed away Darijo Srna's spot-kick after Dado Prso was fouled by defender Tsuneyasu Miyamoto in the first half.
Croatia created the best chances, with Niko Kranjcar hitting the bar and Ivan Klasnic forcing Kawaguchi to parry.
Atsushi Yanagisawa came closest for Japan but scuffed wide from four yards.
Croatia will be happier with the point with Australia to come next, while Japan face the awesome task of having to beat Brazil to stand a chance of qualifying from Group F.
0
Japan
Manager: Zico
Starting lineup:
Goalkeeper
Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi
Defender/Right back
Mitsuo Ogasawara
Defender
Alessandro Santos Alex
Defender
Akira Kaji
Defender
Yuji Nakazawa
Defender/Centre back
Tsuneyasu Miyamoto
(captain)
Midfielder
Takashi Fukunishi
Midfielder
Shunsuke Nakamura
Midfielder
Hidetoshi Nakata
Forward
Naohiro Takahara
Forward
Atsushi Yanagisawa
Substitutions:
| Junichi Inamoto for Takashi Fukunishi | 46 |
| Keiji Tamada for Atsushi Yanagisawa | 61 |
| Masashi Oguro for Naohiro Takahara | 85 |
Cards:
| Tsuneyasu Miyamoto | 21 | Y |
| Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi | 42 | Y |
| Alessandro Santos Alex | 72 | Y |
On the bench:
Goalkeeper
Yoichi Doi
Goalkeeper
Seigo Narazaki
Defender
Yūichi Komano
Defender
Teruyuki Moniwa
Defender
Koji Nakata
Defender
Keisuke Tsuboi
Midfielder
Yasuhito Endo
Midfielder
Junichi Inamoto
Midfielder
Shinji Ono
Forward
Seiichiro Maki
Forward
Masashi Oguro
Forward
Keiji Tamada
Comments:
Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi became the first keeper to save a penalty at the 2006 World Cup finals when he palmed away Dario Snra's 22nd minute spot-kick.
0
Croatia
Manager: Zlatko Kranjcar
Starting lineup:
Stipe Pletikosa
Goalkeeper
Robert Kovač
Defender
Dario Simić
Defender
Josip Simunić
Defender
Darijo Srna
Defender
Igor Tudor
Defender
Marko Babić
Midfielder
Niko Kovač
Midfielder
(captain)
Niko Kranjčar
Midfielder
Ivan Klasnić
Forward
Dado Pršo
Forward
Substitutions:
| Ivica Olić for Igor Tudor | 70 |
| Luka Modrić for Niko Kranjčar | 78 |
| Ivan Bosnjak for Darijo Srna | 87 |
Cards:
| Robert Kovač | 32 | Y |
| Darijo Srna | 69 | Y |
On the bench:
Goalkeeper
Tomislav Butina
Goalkeeper
Joey Didulica
Defender
Ivan Bosnjak
Defender
Anthony Seric
Defender
Mario Tokić
Defender
Stjepan Tomas
Midfielder
Ivan Leko
Midfielder
Jerko Leko
Midfielder
Luka Modrić
Midfielder
Jurica Vranješ
Forward
Bosko Balaban
Forward
Ivica Olić