Since joining Marseille on a free transfer in 2016 Sakai has impressed coaches with his desire and drive to overcome a rocky start in Ligue 1 and become a firm favourite among the club's notoriously ruthless fans. 

Sakai's first few appearances for one of France's biggest and most passionately supported clubs were, in the words of former captain Jacky Bonnevay, "worrying". 

Sakai frequently gave the ball away, was reticent to get forward from his right-back position, and was caught out in defence.

On June 24, 2014, Los Cafeteros came out firing on all cylinders to claim an impressive 4-1 victory over the Japanese in Brazil. The two teams will now meet again in Group H action at Russia 2018. 

Despite only making their first appearance at the World Cup in 1998, Japan have firmly established themselves as a fixture on the global stage.

Nishino was appointed as Vahid Halilhodzic’s replacement just two months before the tournament started following the former Algeria coach’s removal from the post by the Japan Football Association.

It was a contentious decision, but Troussier is convinced the hiring of Nishino can restore confidence and instill a greater Japanese identity within the squad as the nation prepares to make a sixth straight appearance at the Finals.

Four years after failing to win a game at Brazil 2014, a late change saw Japan replacing Bosnian coach Vahid Halilhodzic with Akira Nishino last month.

Having suffered two 2-0 friendly defeats to Ghana and Switzerland under Nishino's leadership, Japan appeared to be set for another World Cup struggle.

But a 4-2 win over Paraguay before arriving in Russia rekindled belief among the squad that they can battle their way out of a group also featuring Senegal and Poland.

Nishino’s side picked up their first win on Tuesday in their third game under their new coach – following losses to Ghana and Switzerland – since replacing Vahid Halilhodzic with a 4-2 victory over Paraguay in their final warm-up before travelling to Russia.

“In the three games I’ve just been experimenting, whether it’s with the formation or the players I picked,” Nishino said. “I completely changed the team from the Swiss game and I wanted to see how they responded.

“As you might be able to imagine, we’ve kept a few things to ourselves, including set-pieces. If I were Colombia, I think I’d have a hard time reading into our team. There are things we’ve been able to show and things we haven’t been able to show up until now.

“Everything we’re doing right now is for the Colombia game.”

A squad filled with big-name veterans and a vastly experienced coach in Akira Nishino at the helm, Japan will hope to channel the spirit of 2002 and 2010 when they reached the last 16 of the FIFA World Cup.

Our Japan expert is Etsuko Motokawa, a Japanese football journalist and author. Motokawa has covered football for over 24 years, attending her first FIFA World Cup in 1994, and she currently writes on Japanese football for several newspapers and websites.

Overview

Japan’s preparation for Russia 2018 has not been the most straightforward of Asia's representatives, with coach Vahid Halilhodzic departing the helm just two months before the competition to be replaced with technical director Akira Nishino.

The former Gamba Osaka boss attempted a new three-man defence in his first match in charge, a 2-0 defeat at home to Ghana on May 30, as well as offering a reprieve to big names Shinji Kagawa, Keisuke Honda, and Shinji Okazaki, whose places were in doubt under Halilhodzic.