The 15th Delle Nazioni Tournament 3rd Place Playoff vs U-15 USA
Tue. 1 May 11:00 kick-off Playing Time 70min.(35min.x2)
Bilje, Slovenia

U-15 Japan National Team 1-2 (1-1, 0-1) U-15 USA National Team

Scores
3' Goal against (U-15 USA National Team)
25' TAKAHASHI Anri (U-15 Japan National Team)
53' Goal against (U-15 USA National Team)

Starting Line-ups
GK: KANOSHIMA Yu
DF: TAKAYANAGI Eijiro, SANO Kazuki, KIKUCHI Shuta, MORITA Sho
MF: YASUDA Kojiro, YAMANE Riku, ASANO Naoki, HIRAKAWA Takuto
FW: SHIMOKAWA Haruki, TAKAHASHI Anri

Reserves
GK: KANEDA Yamato
DF: OSAKO Aoto, SUWAMA Kosei, TANAKA Hayato
MF: YASHIKI Yusei, KATO Daichi
FW: NAKAMURA Naoki, KATSUSHIMA Shinnosuke

Substitutions
HT TAKAHASHI Anri → OSAKO Aoto
HT SANO Kazuki → SUWAMA Kosei
47' TAKAYANAGI Eijiro → NAKAMURA Naoki
56' HIRAKAWA Takuto → YASHIKI Yusei
62' ASANO Naoki → KATO Daichi

Match Report

On Tuesday 1 May, the U-15 Japan National Team faced the U-15 USA National Team in the 3rd place playoff at the 15th Delle Nazioni Tournament. Despite Japan’s strong desire to finish the tour on a high note, the team lost the game 1-2, finishing the tournament in fourth place.

In their final match of the tour, Japan displayed great movements to pick up their rhythm to start the game. Although Japan came close to scoring a goal in the early minutes, the team conceded the opening goal to the USA. Just three minutes into the match, the US side sent the ball into the space behind the Japanese defence line, allowing their forward to break through and score to give them an early lead.

Japan, however, managed to reset themselves quickly. They continued to attack and successfully levelled the match in the 25th minute, when defender MORITA Sho delivered a cross from the right flank. Forward TAKAHASHI Anri slotted the ball into the goal, sending the game into halftime with a score of 1-1.

The match turned into a see-saw game as both teams created opportunities to grab the lead, but their efforts were slightly off by a small margin. However, it was the US team who broke the deadlock. In the 53rd minute USA took the lead when the shot taken by their player outside of the penalty area went passed the Japanese goalkeeper’s head. This go-ahead goal turned out to be the decider of the match as USA went onto win the match with a final score of 1-2.

As a result, the U-15 Japan National Team ended in fourth place. However, the team was awarded with a pleasant surprise when their midfielder YAMANE Riku was named as the most valuable player for his performance throughout the tournament.

Players' Comments

DF #2 KIKUCHI Shuta (Shimizu S-PULSE Junior Youth)
I’m very pleased to have been selected for the national team. I have experienced a lot through playing against national teams from around the world. My headers and one-on-one skills seemed to be effective even against foreign players, while my positioning needs to be improved. Since the opponents are much bigger and faster, it can be crucial if my positioning was a little off. Also, I learned that one mistake could lead us to concede a goal. I’d like to practice every day and learn from this experience, so that I can raise my performance level.

DF #3 SUWAMA Kosei (Yokohama F・Marinos Junior Youth)
I am very honoured to be selected into the national team. Compared to last time I was selected, the opponents we faced were much stronger and I was honestly a little worried heading into the tournament. But the fact we were able to beat England gave us great confidence. In the match against Portugal, we conceded a goal from my mistake, and I had to sub off after the first half. I couldn’t play well, and the team lost the match as well. But knowing we had another match to play in a couple days, I had to reset my mindset to face USA in the playoffs. We couldn’t score when we had the opportunity and conversely conceded when we were caught off guard. We found ourselves in a similar situation last time we were gathered, so we must learn from this experience and improve ourselves. Once I return to my club, I will feed off of this experience and continue to work hard to be called up to the national team again.

MF #6 YASUDA Kojiro (FC Tokyo U-15 Fukagawa)
I have learned a lot from this tour. The team carried a very good atmosphere and we were unified well on and off the pitch. Playing abroad, we faced quicker approach from our opponents, giving us very little time to think. In Japan we would have enough time to turn forward, but in these matches, we had to make our decisions while carrying the pressure on our back. In order to create time, we must time ourselves in making the move, and the quality of the first touch is essential. I will take back what we learned in this tour and implement them in my daily trainings in Japan.

MF #7 HIRAKAWA Takuto (Gamba Osaka Junior Youth)
First of all, I am very happy to be selected into the U-15 Japan National Team. Even though it was my first-time selection, the team’s atmosphere made it easy for me to become a part of the team. In today’s match against the USA, we conceded early, but managed to come back and level the match within the first half. We took control of the match in the second half with our passing game but couldn’t score the go-ahead goal. Unfortunately, we gave up the last goal from our own mistake and lost the match. We ended up in fourth place, but I am very proud of what we have accomplished as a team. I have learned so much about myself through this tour, and I will implement what I have learned in my daily routines so that I can become a better player and be called up to the national team again.

MF #10 YAMANE Riku (Yokohama F・Marinos Junior Youth)
I am very proud to be named as the most valuable player of this tournament. It was very surprising to be awarded such honour, but I know I still have long ways to go as a player, so I will not rest on my laurels and continue to work hard to improve myself.

Schedule

*Local Time
*The schedule is subject to change due to the team condition, the weather, etc.

The 15th Delle Nazioni Tournament

Tournament dates: Wed. 25 April 2018 - Tue. 1 May 2018
Tournament information