The U-19 Japan National Team left for the host city, Los Angeles in the USA, on Monday 27 June in order to participate in the 2016 NTC Invitational Tournament. The players gathered at a practice ground in Chiba to hold a training session before the departure. YOSHIDA Maya, who was undertaking some voluntary training, joined the session to greet and encourage the others. Then the team travelled approximately 10 hours on a plane to Los Angeles before doing some running and passing with the ball to recover from the flight. 

The team attended a meeting on the morning of Tuesday 28 June, so that they could review their achievements and areas for improvement in the Panda Cup, followed by a two-hour training session in the afternoon. The players focused on game-format training to go through tactics, preparing for their first match of this tournament against Panama. The U-19 Japan National Team will meet Panama on 29 June, Costa Rica on 1 July, and the USA on 3 July for their final match.

Players' Comments

DF ＃3  NODA Hiroki (Gamba Osaka)
We held a meeting in the morning, followed by a practice session in the afternoon. During the meeting, we reviewed our achievements and areas for improvement, and went through set pieces. I believe we prepared well to perform in the coming game. I focused strongly on controlling the defensive line during the session. I’d like to look for both good results and performance in the coming three games. As I’m a centre back, I’ll play as hard as possible to keep a clean sheet in every single game.

MF ＃8  WATANABE Kouta (Tokyo Verdy Youth)
I’m over the moon to join the national team for the first time after a while. Although this is my first activity with the U-19 Japan National Team, I’d like to get used to the environment soon and make this trip productive. The matches will start tomorrow. I’d like to prepare well, so that we can win all three games. 

DF ＃6  URATA Itsuki (JEF United Chiba)
We will play against Panama, Costa Rica, and the USA in this tournament. As I’m not sure how they play, I’m looking forward to meeting them. Since we won the Panda Cup, I’d like to win this tournament as well, building up positive momentum for us in preparation for the AFC U-19 Championship in October. I also want to perform well as an individual before going back to Japan.

FW ＃9  OGAWA Koki (Jubilo Iwata)
I’d like to pursue both good results and performance during this USA trip in preparation for the AFC U-19 Championship in October. To achieve this, it’s vital to communicate in detail with others, so that I can understand each player. I’ll do my best to win the championship, making this trip an excellent one.  

Schedule

*Local Time
*This competition is four nations tournament
*The schedule is subject to change due to the team condition, the weather, etc.