The final of the 38th Empress's Cup All Japan Women's Football Tournament will see INAC Kobe Leonessa, who are seeking to become back-to-back champions, face Albirex Niigata Ladies, who are aiming to win the cup for the first time, on Sunday 25 December at Fukuda Denshi Arena in Chiba.

This will be their fourth meeting in the final of the Empress’s Cup where INAC won all three of the previous encounters. While INAC scored a sweeping victory 3-0 in 2011, the closely-contested match in 2013 was decided on penalties (2-2, PK 4-3). Last year saw the commemorative game where the star player in the women’s national team, SAWA Homare, announced her retirement after the tournament. She scored the only goal in the match and hoisted the trophy one last time for the Kobe club.

INAC’s Coach MATSUDA Takeo comments on the final being the same fixture as the previous tournament. “Last year, we won the Empress’s Cup because of the special bond between Sawa and the players. While all the players wanted her career to end with a tournament win, Sawa was determined to grab the title for the team one last time. This year, we got through to the final without her. Every one worked very hard to get here.” He also adds “this is the proof the team have grown up. With this sense of pride, we will go all out to win.”

INAC’s boss also claims that the significant growth in young players as one of the main reasons for his team’s success. He noted the three futures prospects who led the team to win the semi-final match against Vegalta Sendai Ladies. Forward MICHIGAMI Ayaka struck the important opener (tallying a total of three goals in the tournament), while forward KYOKAWA Mai scored two goals after being substituted onto the pitch, whereby forward MASUYA Rika took a significant role in assisting the scoring of the latter pair.

Michigami says: “coach Matsuda is managing the squad since last year and I feel I have more things I can do for the team. It will be better if I can display my strength a bit more in the game.”

INAC players had to play for 120 minutes in the semi-final, whereas Albirex beat Nippon TV Beleza in regulation time. After the long match, the team only have one-day rest before the final. However, they don’t seem to be bothered.

Michigami expresses her satisfaction by saying ‘we gained confidence after winning the difficult match’, while Kyokawa claims ‘this will be the last title to get this year. If we are well united to play on the pitch, we can win. We want to keep our playing our style of football and finish the season on a high note.’ Both players did not even show a hint of fatigue in their comments.

INAC’s goalkeeper FUKUMOTO Miho got injured in the semi-final and her condition is a concern for the team. However, another goalkeeper, TAKENAKA Rei, has been performing superbly in the tournament starting two previous matches prior to the semi-final. In fact, when she came in the middle of the semi-final as a substitute replacing the injured teammate, she showed no signs of nervousness and handled the situation calmly.

On the other hand, Albirex Niigata Ladies have not conceded any goals since the third round, keeping a clean sheet for three straight matches. In the third round, they defeated AS.ELFEN.SAITAMA 1-0 in extra time, while they came on top of AC NAGANO PARCEIRO LADIES 2-0 in the quarter-finals. The semi-final saw them beat Beleza 1-0.

INAC’s coach Matsuda expresses his concern on Albirex’s strength in defence at the same time showing his confidence in the team’s offence. “Albirex’s defence is very solid. However, we know how to play as a united team, while bringing the best of each other in offence.”

Additionally, Albirex are now adding new offensive schemes to the already established defence under the team’s new Coach KARASHIMA Keiju. Their attacks from the flanks are becoming more threatening this year.

Albirex’s defender NAKAMURA Kaede says “I feel our quality of play has been improving since the middle of the season.” She further adds imaging the match against INAC, “in the final, defence will be the key. We need to keep our persistence in defence, while stringing passes effectively.”

The match results of these teams during this season are all squared with 1 win and 1 loss. In April, INAC beat Albirex 1-0 at home, where the only goal was struck by KINGA Yukari who currently plays for Canberra United. In May, KAMIONOBE Megumi and YASAKA Mei scored for Albirex to turn the match around and win 2-1 at home.

Albirex coach Karashima says, “we need to handle the ball better and play in the opponents’ half as much as possible. I want the players to show what they have done until now, not reacting too much to the opposing team. I think their determination to win the title is stronger than mine. I know they want to display their strengths in the Empress’s Cup. I will do my best to create a positive mood for the players.“

The final will kick off at 14:00 Sunday on 25 December.

Empress's Cup Final (12/25)

Fixtures and Results (Japanese version only)

38th Empress's Cup All Japan Women's Football Tournament

2016-10-22(Sat.) ～ 2016-12-25(Sun.)
Final：25 December(Sun.)　Fukuda Denshi Arena

Tournament Information
Ticket Information (Japanese version only)