The KIRIN CHALLENGE CUP 2017 against Japan will be an important test match for New Zealand National Team as they make their final preparation for the World Cup Intercontinental Playoff next month.

New Zealand entered their World Cup Qualifiers in Oceania from the second round and advanced to the next stage by topping Group B, after they defeated the Solomon Islands, the Republic of Fiji and the Republic of Vanuatu in the same group. In the third round, they faced New Caledonia and the Fiji Islands and secured a top place with a record of three wins and one draw. In the World Cup Qualification match that decided the national team who would represent Oceania, All Whites comfortable beat the Solomon Islands in a home-and-away tie with an aggregate score of 8-3, and will square off against the fifth-place team from South America Qualifiers in the intercontinental playoff. Their opponents have not being decided yet, but the probable teams are all powerhouses of South America: Argentina, Chile and Peru. Ahead of this tough encounter to seal a place in the World Cup for the first time since the 2010 competition in South Africa, they will face Japan in the KIRIN CHALLENGE CUP 2017.

In the Confederations Cup as a team representing Oceania, the national squad competed in the same group as Portugal, Mexico and Russia. Despite losing all three matches, they put out a tough 2-1 contest against the potent Mexican side and showed no fear facing the top teams in the world.

Sole scorer in the Mexico match Christopher WOOD joined the national team at 17 and is considered to be the best striker of all time for New Zealand. He currently plays for Premier League Club Burnley FC, and became the top scorer last season in the Championship as a member of Leeds United and tallied 27 goals in 44 appearances. After marking a remarkable performance last season, he continued to display his attacking talent in the top flight by scoring two goals in two games and contributed to the excellent start that the team have enjoyed in the early part of the 2017-18 season.

Chris Wood is not only the threat in the team. There are many gifted players who currently play for the European clubs, including centre half Winston REID for West Ham United in the Premier League and forward Marco ROJAS for Dutch Erdeviste Club SC Heerenveen. At 35 years old, veteran striker Shane SMELTZ who sits second on all-time New Zealand goal-scorer list is also in excellent form, giving the squad plenty of attacking options.

American manager Anthony HUDSON employs a defensive 5-3-2 formation and the team often retreat to form a solid block in defence, while they depend on the individual talents upfront to do the scoring.

New Zealand had faced Japan four times, and the overall record of the past encounters is all squared at two wins and two losses. The most recent meeting was an international friendly match in the KIRIN CHALLENGE Cup on 5 March 2014, where Japan secured a 4-2 win with two goals from OKAZAKI Shinji. In the match that seemed Japan were on their way to a comfortable win, it became a close contest with a double from Chris Wood and forced the Japanese side to work on a number of issues three months prior to the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil.

In the coming match, the main threat for the Japanese squad is undoubtedly Chris Wood. Defending against the twenty-five years old giant who has been performing remarkably in Europe will be the key in deciding the result of the match.

Fri. 6 October 2017　19:20 kick off (estimated time)
SAMURAI BLUE vs New Zealand National Team
Aichi/Toyota Stadium

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Tue. 10 October 2017　19:30 kick off (estimated time)
SAMURAI BLUE vs Haiti National Team
Kanagawa/Nissan Stadium

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