On Tuesday 31 July, after a morning training session at Hartford, the Nadeshiko Japan (Japan Women's National Team) arrived in Chicago ahead of their third match of the 2018 Tournament of Nations.

In their morning training session, the team was seen going through possession drills where the players played six vs six, followed by another variation of six vs six where they included the goal. The team then went through shooting drills from the build-ups initiated by the defence line. Through these drills, the players were given the opportunity to put themselves on the same page to display the Nadeshiko style football. Although the drills were conducted without placing the opposing players, it provided the players a chance to go through each step and make sure of their distance and the speed of the passes exchanged among the team. The session also nurtured the strong intention to heighten the quality of their shots and to score goals.

The session concluded with shooting drills as well as an eight vs eight scrimmage.

After lunch the team made their ways to the airport and travelled to the match site of their third match. The team played in Kansas City which was rich in nature, followed by a quite city of Hartford, and their third destination was the busy city of Chicago. The team will face their third and final match of the tournament against the Australia Women’s National Team.

The match against Australia Women’s National Team is scheduled to kick-off at Friday 3 August, 6:50 Japan time.

Players' Comments

DF #4 MIYAKE Shiori (INAC Kobe Leonessa)
This tournament gave me my first experience playing against the world’s top-class team, USA. To be honest, I felt that I cannot cope with them with my current skillsets. They showcased great physical strengths and speed that leaves us with very little time to think. We will enter our final match against Australia with a record of two losses in two matches played. Our team will implement what we have learnt through the two matches and finish the tournament with a victory.

MF #17 MOMIKI Yuka (Nippon TV Beleza)
Australia has lost to Japan in the final of the Asia Cup in April, so I think they will be seeking for revenge. We must cope with their physical strengths and fight with confidence, while maintaining our modesty. It’s been three months since I’ve returned from my rehabilitation period which lasted a half year, but I still haven’t fully recovered from the injury I sustained, and I’m not satisfied with my performance. However, I have felt the growth and changes through each match I play, so I am hopeful that I can display a better performance in our next match. This tournament gives us the opportunity to play against the world’s very best ahead of next year’s World Cup. I personally have been taken a slow start compared to those players who played in the Algarve Cup and the Asia Cup, so I would like to deepen my tactical understanding and prove that I belong with the team within this limited time ahead of the World Cup.

FW #13 SUGASAWA Yuika (Urawa Red Diamonds Ladies)
Playing against the world’s top teams like the USA and Brazil gave us the opportunity to realise the gap between us and the world. However, there were many aspects that our playing style proved to be effective against them as well, so we must build on the positives ahead of next year’s World Cup. The biggest task we are facing is in our inability to score goals. During the two matches we have played in this tournament, we had plenty of opportunities and if we could have scored in those chances, the results would have been very different. With that being said, facing an Australian side who we faced in the Asia Cup twice, will be a difficult match. We will just have to play tenaciously and capitalise on our given chances to head back home on the high note. We have been playing against very strong teams in such a short period of time during this tournament, and it has shown us how to prepare ourselves both physically and mentally in these tough situations. The tournament gave us the opportunity to realise what we must work on both as a team and as an individual, so we will utilise the remaining time effectively to prepare ourselves.

Schedule

*Local Time, Japan time indicated within the parentheses
*The schedule is subject to change due to the team condition, the weather, etc.

2018 Tournament of Nations

Tournament Dates: Thu. 26 July - Thu. 2 August 2018
Live broadcasting scheduled on NHK BS1
Information on live broadcast(Japanese website)
Tournament Information