Japan

New Delhi: Japan delighted the football fans with an attacking brand of the game that saw them reaching the second round in the 2002 FIFA World Cup.

They become the first team to book their passage to the 2006 FIFA World Cup aside from hosts Germany.

Zico's men started their qualification campaign wityh a bang with six straight wins in the 2004 preliminary round but soon found the going tough.

Iran beat them 2-1 at home in their second Group B game but victory over Bahrain kept Japan on course.

The victory over Korea DPR saw Japan booking their ticket to Germany 2006 with a game to spare, which will be their third successive finals.

Japan's good show has been aided by its Europe-based trio of Hidetoshi Nakata, Shunsuke Nakamura and Shinji Ono.

The other players to watch out for are Mitsuo Ogasawara and Oguro.