Japan national team loses again in round of 16 at World Cup
By STEPHEN WADE
AP Sports Writer
AL WAKRAH, Qatar (AP) — Japan is headed back to the drawing board after making it back to the round of 16. The Japanese reached the knockout stage of the World Cup for the fourth time and then lost for the fourth time. This one came in a penalty shootout against 2018 runner-up Croatia. Japan midfielder Wataru Endo says “penalties. Nothing you can do.” Japan scored first at Al Janoub Stadium but Croatia got one back in the second half. Japan was drawn into a difficult group in Qatar with two of the three most recent World Cup champions but the Japanese beat both Spain and Germany by identical 2-1 scores.