The 15th Delle Nazioni Tournament 1st Match vs U-15 England
Wed. 25 April 18:00 kick-off Playing Time 70min.(35min.×2)
Carlino, Italy

U-15 Japan National Team 4-3 (1-2, 3-1) U-15 England National Team

Scores
18' TAKAYANAGI Eijiro (U-15 Japan National Team)
23' Goal against (U-15 England National Team)
24' Goal against (U-15 England National Team)
43' KATSUSHIMA Shinnosuke (U-15 Japan National Team)
44' TAKAHASHI Anri (U-15 Japan National Team)
53' Goal against (U-15 England National Team)
67' KATSUSHIMA Shinnosuke (U-15 Japan National Team)

Starting Line-ups
GK: KANOSHIMA Yu
DF: OSAKO Aoto, SUWAMA Kosei, SANO Kazuki, MORITA Sho
MF: ASANO Naoki, YAMANE Riku, TAKAYANAGI Eijiro, YASUDA Kojiro
FW: NAKAMURA Naoki, SHIMOKAWA Haruki

Reserves
GK: KANEDA Yamato
DF: KIKUCHI Shuta, TANAKA Hayato
MF: HIRAKAWA Takuto, YASHIKI Yusei, KATO Daichi
FW: TAKAHASHI Anri、KATSUSHIMA Shinnosuke

Substitutions
HT NAKAMURA Naoki → KATSUSHIMA Shinnosuke
HT SHIMOKAWA Haruki → TAKAHASHI Anri
HT ASANO Naoki → KATO Daichi
HT SANO Kazuki → TANAKA Hayato
HT YASUDA Kojiro → YASHIKI Yusei
59' OSAKO Aoto → KIKUCHI Shuta

Match Report

Wednesday 25 April saw the opening day of the 15th Delle Nazioni Tournament. U-15 Japan National Team who had arrived in Italy on Monday 23 April to prepare for this tournament won their first group league match 4-3 against U-15 England National Team.

Just as Coach MORIYAMA mentioned about his team, the Japanese side started out the match aggressively, creating chances early on. The opening goal came in the 18th minute, when Japanese midfielder TAKAYANAGI Eijiro launched a left footed shot from distance. His shot would find the back of the net in the right corner. However, after this goal, Japan would allow England to take control of the match. In the 23rd minute, the English side delivered a cross from the right flank towards the centre, which they successfully converted to level the match. Just a minute later, they would go onto score the go-ahead goal after penetrating the right side. Both teams created opportunities in the remainder of the first half, but the match entered half time with a score of 1-2.

Japan went onto using five of their substitutions at the half, utilising those fresh legs to retake the initiative of the match. After receiving the ball from YAMANE Riku, midfielder KATO Daichi sent out a through ball towards KATSUSHIMA Shinnosuke, who calmly dribbled passed the opposing goalkeeper before slotting the ball into the open net. Striker TAKAHASHI Anri’s goal came just a minute later, when he connected with a cross delivered by midfielder YASHIKI Yusei, to give his side the lead once again.

With England scoring their third goal in the 53rd minute, it seemed destine for the match to end in a tie, but in the 67th minute, Japan initiated a quick start from a corner kick, sending a cross into the box. Katsushima made the run in the far side to score with his header. Japan grabbed onto their lead and won the match.

After winning the crucial opening match, Japan will face the U-15 Czech Republic National Team on the following day.

Players' Comments

DF #8 MORITA Sho (Albirex Niigata U-15)
I am here in Italy to obtain many experience. I was looking forward for the opening match against England, since they are probably the strongest team participating in this tournament. It really pumped me up because the opposing players were very big, much taller than me, and they looked really sharp. That competitive feeling kept growing during the match, as the English team were in fact very strong and fast. There were many aspects we managed to do well, but it was evident that there were more things we lacked, so we must keep improving through our daily trainings. We still have long ways to go until winning this tournament, so we will try to learn and enjoy each match at a time.

MF #4 TAKAYANAGI Eijiro (FC. Fervor Aichi)
I am very glad that I was selected into the U-15 National Team. At first I was a little scared facing foreign teams, but as I spent time with my team, I have become more excited about the opportunity. In our match against England today, I think I was able to showcase my enthusiasm and fighting spirit. I am happy I got to contribute to my team’s victory by scoring a goal. I will feed off this experience and continue to do my best to help my team win matches.

MF #10 YAMANE Riku (Yokohama F・Marinos Junior Youth)
It is an honour being selected into the U-15 National Team and joining this Italy trip. I would like to experience many things so that I can understand what I am capable of. We exchanged many goals in our opening match against England today, and it was a very difficult match. But everybody worked hard until the very end, and our team showed great heart to win the match. The individual skills displayed by the England team were very high, and I learned many things from them. I would like to become a player that can settle the team down when the team is facing adversity. In order to do so, I must be able to make quicker decisions and improve my techniques. There were some aspects I manage to do well, so I would like to build on it to become a better player. I will like to utilise today’s experience to build my confidence, and perform well in matches with higher intensity, so that we can win the championship.

Schedule

*Local Time
*The schedule is subject to change due to the team condition, the weather, etc.

The 15th Delle Nazioni Tournament

Tournament dates: Wed. 25 April 2018 - Tue. 1 May 2018
Tournament information