EAFF U15 Boys' Tournament 2018 3rd Match vs U-15 Northern Mariana Islands
Thu. 26 July 2018 Kick-off 13:30 (Local time) Match duration 60mins (30mins x2)
National Football Training Center (Xianghe, China PR)

U-15 Japan National Team 16-0 (6-0, 10-0) U-15 Northern Mariana Islands

Scores
3' TAKAYANAGI Eijiro (U-15 Japan National Team)
4' NOZAWA Leon (U-15 Japan National Team)
10' NOZAWA Leon (U-15 Japan National Team)
21' NOZAWA Leon (U-15 Japan National Team)
30+1' KIKUCHI Shuta (U-15 Japan National Team)
30+3' TAKAYANAGI Eijiro (U-15 Japan National Team)
33' KATSUSHIMA Shinnosuke (U-15 Japan National Team)
35' KAJIURA Yuki (U-15 Japan National Team)
37' own goal (U-15 Japan National Team)
41' KATSUSHIMA Shinnosuke (U-15 Japan National Team)
43' KATSUSHIMA Shinnosuke (U-15 Japan National Team)
44' TAKAYANAGI Eijiro (U-15 Japan National Team)
51' IGAMI Arya (U-15 Japan National Team)
53' IGAMI Arya (U-15 Japan National Team)
56' KATO Tsubasa (U-15 Japan National Team)
60' KATO Tsubasa (U-15 Japan National Team)

Starting Line-ups
GK: KANOSHIMA Yu
DF: KIKUCHI Shuta, TANAKA Hayato, ICHIHARA Miran, OSAKO Aoto
MF: KATO Tsubasa, KAJIURA Yuki, YAMANE Riku, TAKAYANAGI Eijiro
FW: NOZAWA Leon, KAWANO Kota

Reserves
GK: TANAKA Haruki
DF: SUWAMA Kosei, MORITA Sho, MATSUKI Kuryu
MF: TOYAMA Haruki
FW: KATSUSHIMA Shinnosuke, IGAMI Arya

Substitutions
HT KANOSHIMA Yu → TANAKA Haruki
HT NOZAWA Leon → KATSUSHIMA Shinnosuke
HT KAWANO Kota → IGAMI Arya
HT OSAKO Aoto → MATSUKI Kuryu
HT TANAKA Hayato → SUWAMA Kosei
HT KIKUCHI Shuta → MORITA Sho

Match Report

In their third match of the EAFF U15 Boys' Tournament 2018, the U-15 Japan National Team faced the U-15 Northern Mariana Islands, in a match where the tournament officials announced that they will be reducing the duration of the match to 60 minutes, due to the risk of heatstroke in the scorching weather.

Japan opened the scoring with TAKAYANAGI Eijiro’s goal in the third minute, which led to a goal rush for the Japanese side as NOZAWA Leon scored a hat-trick within the first half with goals scored in the fourth, 10th and 21st minute. In the additional time of the first half, KIKUCHI Shuta headed-in a corner-kick taken by YAMANE Riku. Right after the fifth goal, TANAKA Haruki delivered a long ball to the space behind the defenders, allowing Takayanagi to score his second goal of the match, as Japan cruised through the first half with a score of 6-0.

Japan used all seven substitutes during halftime and continued to attack Northern Mariana Islands. There goal rush continued as the seventh goal was scored by the second half substitute KATSUSHIMA Shinnosuke in the 33rd minute. KAJIURA Yuki scored in the 36th minute, followed by an own goal in the 37th minute, making it 9-0. Katsushima went on to score two more goals in the 41st and 43rd minutes to record a hat-trick, while Takayanagi also recorded his third goal of the match in the 43rd minute. In total, three Japanese players achieved a hat-trick. Japan showed no mercy as they rang up the tally. IGAMI Arya scored in the 50th and 53rd minute, while KATO Tsubasa scored in the 56th and 60th minutes. After the reduced regulation time was over, Japan ended up with sixteen goals for the match.

After the match against Northern Mariana Islands, Japan held two 20-minute training matches against Korea Republic. The match was not initially planned, but they decided to utilise the extra time created by the shortened match since the two teams were not scheduled to play against each other in this tournament. Even though both teams had just played their match, the two teams showcased a very intense match. Nozawa scored the only goal of the match in the 10th minute, giving Japan the 1-0 victory.

The fourth match of the tournament will take place on 28 July. Japan will play against Korea DPR.

Players' Comments

DF #2 SUWAMA Kosei (Yokohama F・Marinos Junior Youth)
There are many players making their national team debut in this tour, and we had some difficult times at first, but I feel that we are getting better day by day as a team. Yesterday, we talked as a team to heighten the quality of play in the penalty area. Although we managed to win the match against Northern Mariana Islands with lots of goals, and we saw some positive stretches in our training match against Korea Republic, there were many scenes where we almost conceded goals from counter attacks during the training match. It made us realise that we still need to manage the risks better. In our next match against Korea DPR, we know that our opponents will come out playing with great intensity, so we must keep our mentality strong and go out and win the match.

DF #3 TANAKA Hayato (Kashiwa Reysol U-15)
We have played a total of four matches including today’s match against Northern Mariana Islands and the training match with Korea Republic, and we have managed to keep a clean sheet throughout. As a defender, this fact gives me great confidence. However, there are still issues to improve such as how to respond to fast players, risk management, and our intensity in fifty-fifty situations. We still have two more matches to play during this tour in China PR. I would like to pay more attention to details on the pitch so that I can reach a higher-level. We will give our best in the remaining matches so that we can end this competition undefeated.

MF #13 KATO Tsubasa (Gamba Kadoma Junior Youth)
I am very happy to be called-up to the U-15 Japan National Team for the first time. It was a little difficult to adjust at first as I needed some time to get used to my peers and the new environment, but as we spend more time, I am getting used to it all. We still have many things to improve both as a team and as an individual. For an example, we need to heighten the quality of our plays in the final third, speed up our transitions, better performance in one-on-one situations, risk management, and collective defence. We must keep all of these aspects in mind while we play the remaining matches. I would like to stay eager to win the matches and give my best in the next two matches.

MF #16 TOYAMA Haruki (Kyoto Sanga F.C. U-15)
As much as I am happy to be called up for the second time for the U-15 Japan National Team, I am here to prove that I belong here. After playing four matches including the two matches we played today, I have been positioned in a defensive midfield role and a flank midfield role so far. I felt that I must have a strong intention to play both offence and defence in order to keep up at this level. In our training match against Korea Republic, I played as a side midfielder and managed to position myself well to intercept the ball which led to our goal scoring play. I need to continue playing like this. In our next two matches, I would like to create our team’s rhythm by playing solid defence and contribute for our team’s victory.

Schedule

*Local Time
*All matches will be held at the National Football Training Center (Xianghe)
*The schedule is subject to change due to the team condition, the weather, etc.

EAFF U15 Boys' Tournament 2018

Tournament Dates: Mon. 23 July - Sat. 28 July 2018
Tournament Venue: National Football Training Center (China PR)
Tournament Information