International Friendly vs U-19 Brazil National Team
Sun. 9 September 2018 Kick-off time 10:30 (local time) Match duration 90mins (45mins×2)
National Training Centre of Mexican Football Federation, Mexico City, Mexico

U-19 Japan National Team 1-1 (0-0, 1-1) U-19 Brazil National Team

Scores
52' goal against (U-19 Brazil National Team)
60' TAGAWA Kyosuke (U-19 Japan National Team)

Starting Line-up
GK: TANI Kosei
DF: SUGAWARA Yukinari, HASHIOKA Daiki, SEKO Ayumu, OGIWARA Takuya
MF: GOKE Yuta, ITO Hiroki, HIRAKAWA Rei, TAKI Yuta
FW: TAGAWA Kyosuke, KUBO Takefusa

Reserves
GK: OSAKO Keisuke, WAKAHARA Tomoya
DF: KAWAI Ayumu, ABE Kaito, ISHIO Ryoga, HIGASHI Shunki
MF: SAITO Mitsuki, HORI Kenta, YAMADA Kota
FW: HARA Taichi, ANDO Mizuki, MIYASHIRO Taisei, SAITO Koki

Substitutions
HT HIRAKAWA Rei → SAITO Mitsuki
HT OGIWARA Takuya → HIGASHI Shunki
HT KUBO Takefusa → SAITO Koki
67' TAGAWA Kyosuke → HARA Taichi
67' TAKI Yuta → MIYASHIRO Taisei
83' GOKE Yuta → YAMADA Kota

Match Report

On Sunday 9 September, the U-19 Japan National Team played in an international friendly match against the U-19 Brazil National Team in Mexico, finishing the match with a 1-1 draw.

The U-19 Japan National Team has faced the U-19 Brazil National Team in 2016 at the Suwon JS Cup, where they drew against the South American powerhouse 2-2. Brazil has brought a complete squad to this tour during the FIFA matchday-week, as the team featured eight players playing in Europe. For Brazil, this tour serves as a preparation tour ahead of the U-20 CONMEBOL qualifiers scheduled to be held in Chile on late January, to win their spot into the FIFA U-20 World Cup. The team has beaten the host team, U-19 Mexico National Team 1-0, just after their arrival to Mexico.

The match started with Brazil takin the initiative of the match, as they created a goal scoring opportunity in the second minute, where the shot sailed just over the crossbar, leaving Japan with sigh of relief. The South American side took control of the match through their quick and accurate ball movements, forcing Japan to play in their defensive end. While their patience was being tested, Japan did create an opportunity in the 16th minute when KUBO Takefusa delivered a pass to HIRAKAWA Rei, who struck a shot, but his attempt was blocked by the opposing defender.

Goalkeeper TANI Kosei showcased a superb save in the 26th minute, when Brazil broke through the Japanese defence line to create a one-on-one situation. In the 34th minute, Japan almost conceded a goal from their own mistake, but defender SEKO Ayumu and Tani displayed a great collective effort to deny the opportunity. Tani made another excellent save in the 36th minute to deny a header following a corner kick. Despite being bombarded by the Brazilian attacks, Japan’s golden opportunity came in the closing minutes of the first half, as they initiated a counter attack where Kubo dribbled up the field before sending the last pass. TAGAWA Kyosuke reacted to this through ball as he faced the opposing goalkeeper one-on-one, but his shot couldn’t capture the goal.

In efforts to change the momentum, Japan made three substitutes during halftime, however, it was the Brazil side who took control of the match in the early minutes of the second half. The deadlock was broken in the 52nd minute, when HIGASHI Shunki conceded a foul in his own penalty area. Brazil calmly converted the penalty kick to take the lead. Despite conceding the opening goal, Japan gradually picked up their pace to create opportunities to level the match. In the 59th minute, SAITO Koki and ITO Hiroki combined well to deliver the ball to the right flank where SUGAWARA Yukinari made a run to send a cross to the centre. Midfielder GOKE Yuta connected with this cross to strike a shot, but his attempt went over the crossbar. Just a minute later, Sugawara received a long ball from Seko, before sending a well-timed through ball to free up Tagawa to face the opposing goalkeeper one-on-one once again. This time Tagawa stayed poised to convert the opportunity to level the match with one goal apiece. Although both teams showed signs of fatigues, the match remained intense as both teams fought hard to take the lead. Higashi made a tenacious effort to stop Brazil’s critical opportunity in the 75th minute. Japan also created numbers of opportunities but was denied by the solid defence showcased by the Brazilian players. Despite being dominated for a good portion of the match, Japan managed to draw against one of the best teams in the world, as the match ended with a final score of 1-1.

Japan will face the U-20 Club América in their final match of this Mexico tour.

Players' Comments

GK #23 TANI Kosei (Gamba Osaka)
This tour represents our last activity ahead of the AFC U-19 Championship Indonesia 2018 and it gives us the opportunity to face teams like the U-19 Brazil National Team and the U-19 Mexico National Team who we may face at the FIFA U-20 World Cup, so I am very honoured to be called up for this important event. In our matches against Mexico and Brazil, our defence facing set-plays were a bit shaky, as we conceded a goal against Mexico, while Brazil came close to scoring many times through set-plays. In order for us to play at the world standards, we must improve how we deal with set-plays, both offensively and defensively. I personally need to broaden my versatility so that I can help the team defend more easily. The fact that we haven’t conceded goals through the flow of the match can be sought as a positive. These matches against the world’s top teams has given us the opportunity to realise what we need to work on ahead of the AFC U-19 Championship Indonesia 2018, so we will utilise the remaining time effectively to improve the team.

DF #4 HASHIOKA Daiki (Urawa Reds)
This was my first call up to the U-19 Japan National Team since attending the FIFA World Cup Russia as training partners, so I am very happy to participate in this Mexico tour. This tour is our last opportunity to prepare ahead of the AFC U-19 Championship Indonesia 2018, so we must take each day of this tour seriously. I played in the first 45 minutes of the match against the U-19 Mexico National Team and I feel like I managed to showcase what I am capable of. It was my first time working with Seko Ayumu to play as a centre half, but we have improved our combinations as we played along. As a team, we conceded a goal from a set-play, which was an area Coach KAGEYAMA Masanaga had told us to be aware of, so we need to make the adjustments as soon as possible. Set-plays can be a vital aspect at the AFC U-19 Championship Indonesia 2018, so we must pay more attention. We faced some very difficult stretches in today’s match against the U-19 Brazil National Team, but we managed to stay patient to level the match, so that was something we can be proud of. It’s unfortunate that we couldn’t keep a clean sheet in both of our matches, but we just need to utilise this tour to communicate with our peers to build a positive relationship among the team. We hope to win the final match and end the tour in a high note.

DF #5 SUGAWARA Yukinari (Nagoya Grampus U-18)
I’m honoured to be selected into the U-19 Japan National Team for this tour to Mexico. I will give my best to determine how I can contribute to the team ahead of the AFC U-19 Championship Indonesia 2018 and try to earn my spot in the team. After facing the U-19 Mexico National Team and the U-19 Brazil National Team, we managed to make adjustments following our match against Mexico and showed improvements in our match against Brazil. By staying vocal within the team, we showed better cohesiveness in both offence and defence against Brazil. However, we still need to improve the quality of our plays at the final third and time ourselves better when challenging the ball in defence. With all that in mind, we will make the necessary adjustments ahead of our final match. The high altitude and time difference have made it difficult for us to maintain our conditions, but it has also given us a valuable experience to learn the importance of selfcare to play in our best form at the match. Through this tour, we will prepare ourselves ahead of the AFC U-19 Championship Indonesia 2018 by testing out various systems and build on what we have previously worked on.

MF #6 SAITO Mitsuki (Shonan Bellmare)
I am glad to be called up to this vital tour ahead of the AFC U-19 Championship Indonesia 2018. In our match against Mexico, we struggled to cope with the tenacious efforts made by our opponents and rushed our plays at first, but we managed to regain our composure by communicating with our teammates. It was a match that made us realise the importance to make adjustments according to how the opponents play against us. In our match today, Brazil showcased a wide variety in their offence, providing us with a great learning experience. We worked hard as a team to contain their goal to just one, while converting our opportunity to level the match. However, the way we conceded the goal was regretful and we made too many easy mistakes. Whether I’m playing for my club or the national team, I must have an intention to play as perfectly as possible at a daily basis.

MF #8 GOKE Yuta (Vissel Kobe)
Ahead of the AFC U-19 Championship Indonesia 2018, I am thankful to be selected into the squad. In our match against the U-19 Mexico National Team, it was very regretful that we conceded through a set-play. In today’s match against the U-19 Brazil National Team, despite getting dominated by our opponents, we managed to stay patient to defend through the tough stretch. It was great that we were given the opportunity to play against the world’s powerhouses ahead of the AFC U-19 Championship Indonesia 2018, as this tour has given us great confidence. But at the same time, it has made us realise that we all must improve ourselves at the individual level for the team to cope with the best teams in the world. The match against Brazil has really given us a valuable learning experience. I will continue to give my best to prove that I belong to this team at the AFC U-19 Championship Indonesia 2018.

Schedule

*Local Time
*The schedule is subject to change due to the team condition, the weather, etc.
*The official name of the National Training Centre of Mexican Football Federation is as follow:
　Centro de Alto Rendimiento de la Federacion Mexicana de Futbol
*Please be advised that depending on the circumstance of the venue, an admission restriction may apply.

International Friendly Match

Match Dates: Sun. 2 - Thu. 13 September 2018
Match Venue: National Training Centre of Mexican Football Federation, Mexico
For more information