The Nadeshiko Japan (Japan Women's National Team) played their second match of the Women's Olympic Football Tournament Paris 2024 Asian Qualifiers Round 2 against the Uzbekistan Women's National Team on Sunday, 29 October at Bunyodkor Stadium in Tashkent. A 2-0 win over the host nation, led by head coach HONDA Midori, saw the team take a big step towards the final qualifying round with two wins in a row.

Head coach IKEDA Futoshi opted to stick with the same 4-3-3 formation as in the first match against India but made nine changes to the starting line-up. YAMASHITA Ayaka (INAC Kobe Leonessa) started in goal, while the back line consisted of ENDO Jun (Angel City FC), MINAMI Moeka (AS Roma), TAKAHASHI Hana (Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Urawa Reds Ladies) and SHIMIZU Risa (West Ham United). KUMAGAI Saki (AS Roma) continued to anchor the midfield behind the two inside midfielders, HAYASHI Honoka (West Ham United) and NAGANO Fuka (Liverpool FC). SEIKE Kiko (Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Urawa Reds Ladies) and MIYAZAWA Hinata (Manchester United) were deployed on the flanks, while CHIBA Remina (JEF United Ichihara Chiba Ladies) started as a lone striker.

In a match featuring a showdown between two Japanese coaches, Uzbekistan, defending compactly in their own half, created a close opportunity in the third minute from a fast break, but Yamashita was there to make the save.

Japan gradually took the initiative through their quick pressing and opened the scoring in the 10th minute when Minami headed in Endo's corner. Five minutes later, Endo set up Chiba, who doubled Japan's lead with a left-footed shot from inside the area.

Despite conceding a two goal lead, Uzbekistan opted not to take risks to win the ball, as they are still in position to make the final round depending on the results of other fixtures. With their opponents taking a defensive approach, Japan also opted to conserve their energy with their eyes set on the third match, as the first half ended 2-0.

NAKASHIMA Yoshino (Sanfrecce Hiroshima Regina), NAOMOTO Hikaru (Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Urawa Reds Ladies), MIYAKE Shiori (INAC Kobe Leonessa), HASEGAWA Yui (Manchester City) and SUGITA Hina (Portland Thorns FC) all came off the bench in the second half, but the match went on without much action as Japan walked away with a comfortable 2-0 victory.

The Nadeshiko Japan will now face the Vietnam Women’s National Team on Wednesday, 1 November.

Coach and Players' Comments

IKEDA Futoshi, Head Coach of Nadeshiko Japan (Japan Women's National Team)
Our main focus was to get all three points and, with no need to improve our goal difference, we decided not to take any more risks and concentrate on possessing the ball once we were up 2-0. If we are to play the first-place team from Group A in the final round, the second leg will be played away from home, and if that opponent is Australia, we will have to deal with the heat as the seasons are reversed. We want to avoid that scenario if we can, so I gave my players a game plan before the match and told them that we had to do everything we could while securing three points. It was a very difficult game, but it was a great experience for the players to work together to achieve a mutual goal. The players did a great job, and we will continue to prepare for our next game against Vietnam.

DF #3 MINAMI Moeka (AS Roma/Italy)
As a team, we have prepared so many different set-pieces that it is hard to keep track of them all, but we have struggled to capitalise on them in our recent games. With that in mind, I am happy to have scored from a set-piece that we have been working on in camp. Once we were two goals up, we concentrated not only on possession, but also on the speed of our passing and our long to medium-range passes. Although it was a difficult game, we knew this was a necessary step, so we listened carefully to our coach's instructions and worked together as a team.

MF #13 ENDO Jun (Angel City FC/USA)
I am happy that we were able to capitalise on a set-piece that we had been working on. The second goal came from a play where (Chiba) Remina-san made a great run into space, so I am glad that I was able to provide the assist. Once we were two goals up, we concentrated on hedging risks and possessing the ball, especially as our opponents were not as aggressive after the ball. Our goal is to qualify for the Paris Olympics, so we will continue to strive for three points in our next game and try to use this experience to improve ourselves as a team.

FW #22 CHIBA Remina (JEF United Ichihara Chiba Ladies)
I was aiming for the top near corner of the goal when I scored, and I am glad it went in. There were other chances I should have taken though, so this game reminded me that I need to get better. How I make myself available when our full-backs have the ball is one of the things I need to work on, so I made a conscious effort to time my runs in this game. I will try to use this experience to improve my performance and combinations with my teammates in future matches.

Women's Olympic Football Tournament Paris 2024 Asian Qualifiers Round 2

Tournament Dates: Thu. 26 October - Wed. 1 November 2023
Tournament information