After enduring a one-game suspension and some shaky moments at the Asian Cup, Japan goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima faced his toughest moment yet when his team went to a penalty shootout against South Korea in the semifinals.
He was ready.
''I was thinking in extra time, I had to just focus on saving the goals,'' the 27-year-old Kawashima said. ''I was thinking the first one would be really important so it's good I could save it. I just had to believe in myself.''
Kawashima turned out to be the star of Tuesday's match, stopping the first two South Korean penalties and watching a third go wide as Japan advanced to Saturday's final against Australia with a 3-0 shootout win following a 2-2 draw.
Players crowded around Kawashima, patting him on the back and congratulating him. Gone were the doubts raised after he was sent off against Syria in a group stage match for bringing down striker Sanharib Malki in the box.
After sitting out the final group match, he returned against Qatar in the quarterfinals. But his performance in that match came under fire after he allowed Sebastian Suria to get a ball past him in the 12th minute and then misjudged a free kick from Fabio Cesar in the 62nd that briefly gave the Qataris the lead. He said later he had been blinded and failed to see the ball which squeezed past him and the post.
Kawashima, who plays for Belgian club Lierse, said the tournament had been tough for both him and the team.
''It was not only me suspended. For the team, it's been difficult,'' he said. ''We are growing up as a team and in the final we would like to show how we are.''
Despite the earlier miscues, Japan coach Alberto Zaccheroni has stood by Kawashima, saying no goalkeeper is perfect and that he was not about make a switch in the middle of the tournament just because he had an off game.
''A couple of days ago, I told Kawashima that I trusted him very much and told him the same today,'' the veteran Italian coach said. ''He did more than I expected.''
Kawashima was selected for Japan's squad at last year's World Cup and was expected to back up Seigo Narazaki, but he earned the starting job after a stellar performance in a friendly against England in May. He denied Frank Lampard twice, including from the penalty spot, and stopped a shot from Wayne Rooney before eventually being beaten by two own-goals.
He started in Japan's opening Group E match against Cameroon, a 1-0 victory that was the country's first World Cup win on foreign soil.
