On Thursday 8 November, the Nadeshiko Japan (Japan Women's National Team) held a two-part training session ahead of their international friendly match against Norway Women's National Team on Sunday 11 November.

On the third day of their training camp, the team emphasised on their ball possessions. Ahead of the morning training session, Coach TAKAKURA Asako assembled the players and told them, “We must showcase a football style with great ball movements. In order for us to do so, we must keep in mind of our positionings and keep a wide perspective to support our teammates.” While the coach kept an emphasis on their ball possessions, she continued by stating, “At the international level, we must be able to evade the strong pressure applied by the opponents and execute accurate plays. We must work on plays with high intensity in both offence and defence at the training sessions.”

During the 4 vs 4 drills played in a small size court, the team focused on ways to evade the opponent’s pressure, the third players presence, and to make quick decisions to change their plays when necessary. The team then expanded the field to conduct an 11 vs 11 drill to work on the aspects to widen their perspective, play simple, and to utilise the width of the field. With more space to work with, the communication between players became the focal point. The veterans led the team as KAWASUMI Nahomi, UTSUGI Rumi, and KUMAGAI Saki stayed vocal throughout the session.

The session in the afternoon featured a scrimmage that saw the players competing with great intensity for the starting spot in the match against Norway. After training, players in the same positions were seen talking to each other to stay on the same page.

The international friendly match vs Norway Women's National Team will kick off at 14:00 on Sunday 11 November at Bird Stadium, Tottori.

Players' Comments

DF #5 ICHISE Nana (Mynavi Vegalta Sendai Ladies)
After missing the USA tour in July and the Asian Games in August due to injury, I need to catch up with the rest of the team in terms of techniques, endurance, and speed. That’s what I am realising during this training camp. This match will give me the opportunity to catch up with the team and to prove that I belong here with the rest of the team members. My current goal is to be selected into the World Cup squad and win the title there. Then the Olympics in Tokyo will follow. These goals have been motivating me to move forward.

FW #19 MASUYA Rika (INAC Kobe Leonessa)
This match against Norway has give us the opportunity to strengthen ourselves ahead of the upcoming World Cup. For me, each and every match is as important, so I will give my very best ahead of this match. I don’t know if I will be given the playing time on the pitch, but I will work hard from the training sessions so that I can earn a spot into the line-up. Attending the World Cup as a member of Nadeshiko Japan is completely different from the World Cups at the underage categories. In the 2012 FIFA U-17 World Cup at Azerbaijan, we advanced through the group stage without conceding a single goal but conceded our first goal at the quarterfinals against Ghana and got eliminated from the tournament. I have never forgotten that bitterness I felt, as it gave me a great learning experience that the competitions at the world stage is not easy. I have dreamed of playing in the World Cup, so I hope to make it into the final member.

Schedule

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

Morning Training Session

Afternoon Training Session

International Friendly Match

Sun. 11 November 2018 14:00 Kick-off
Nadeshiko Japan (Japan Women's National Team) vs Norway Women's National Team
Bird Stadium, Tottori

Tournament Information