On Wednesday 4 December, coach MORIYASU Hajime announced the squad for the U-22 Japan National Team, who will face the U-22 Jamaica National Team at the KIRIN CHALLENGE CUP 2019 held in Nagasaki. Following their loss to Colombia in Hiroshima, coach Moriyasu shared his aspiration, “We hope to deliver the victory we weren’t able to deliver in November. We will give our best efforts to showcase a positive performance that can lead us to future success.”

19 players were named on this day, including IWATA Tomoki (Oita Trinita) and NAKAYAMA Yuta (PEC Zwolle), who played against Colombia last month. MATSUMOTO Taishi (Sanfrecce Hiroshima) and ABE Hiroki (FC Barcelona), each made their return since they were selected for the Copa America and North/Central America tour respectively.

Three players made their first selection, as KOKUBO Leobrian (SL Benfica), HIGASHI Shunki (Sanfrecce Hiroshima), and ICHIMI Kazunari (Kyoto Sanga FC) were named into the squad. Coach Moriyasu shared his expectations for the newcomers, “I want them to showcase their strengths while implementing the team’s concepts. I don’t want them to be a spectator, but rather be an aggressive challenger who can prove that they belong here.”

Regarding the roster size being limited to 19 players, JFA Technical Director SEKIZUKA Takashi shared their intention to add more players ahead of the match, “With the J.League still in full swing, we wanted to take our time to fill the 23-man roster.”

With their eyes set for the Summer Olympics, coach Moriyasu mentioned, “Ahead of next year’s Tokyo Olympics, we must raise the level of players of this generation and build a team that can compete at the world stage.” The Japanese coach continued by sharing his hopes towards the players, “I don’t want them to be satisfied with their current state. It is my job to keep them motivated to strive for a higher level.”

From this match, assistant coach KURIHARA Katsushi will newly join the coaching staff of the U-22 Japan National Team. The team will be gathered in Nagasaki on Tuesday 24 December and hold their training sessions ahead of the match against the Jamaica National Team at Transcosmos Stadium Nagasaki on Saturday 28.

Comment of Coach MORIYASU Hajime

Last month’s match against the U-22 Colombia National Team ended in a regretful result, and we are very disappointed that we couldn’t deliver the victory to our fans and supporters. With that in mind, we hope to deliver the victory this time against the U-22 Jamaica National Team. We will give our best efforts to showcase a positive performance that can lead us to future success. Despite seeing a major change to our squad, our goal remains the same. Ahead of next year’s Tokyo Olympics, we must continue to raise the level of players of this generation and build a team that can compete at the world stage. In order to achieve our goal at the Tokyo Olympics, we must develop players who can play for the SAMURAI BLUE (Japan National Team). I don’t want them to be satisfied with their current state. It is my job to keep them motivated to strive for a higher level.

Schedule

*The schedule is subject to change.

U-22 Japan National Team vs U-22 Jamaica National Team
Date: Sat. 28 December 2019 19:20
Venue: Transcosmos Stadium Nagasaki, Nagasaki

Match Information