1. Reality bites
After last week's narrow defeat in Saudi Arabia, it might have been tempting to believe that Thailand were ready to give the continent's best a run for their money. The Thais had been extremely unlucky to lose in Riyadh, suggesting that they might be ready to challenge the Japanese.
But the War Elephants were given the runaround in the first 20 minutes, in particular, as Japan showed their class. The movement of Shinji Kagawa, Keisuke Honda and Asano, had the hosts chasing shadows. It was no surprise when Genki Haraguchi headed in the opener from Hiroki Sakai's cross.
The Japanese demonstrated the difference between a team with individuals, playing at the highest level in Europe, and a team who play their football in Thailand only. There is still some way to go until the Thais can reach this level.