The U-20 Japan Women's National Team, who are competing in the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup Costa Rica 2022™, had two days to prepare ahead of the final, where they will be looking to win back-to-back titles for the first time ever in the tournament's history.

One day following their 2-1 victory over Brazil, the team held a morning training session on Friday 26 August. The players who played in the semi-finals were seen going through light workouts to recover their physical conditions, while the rest of the team went through normal training drills, including mini games to raise their intensity level.

The team also held a training session on Saturday 27, where they went through their team tactics and set pieces under light rain showers. Since the team will disband after the tournament, this was the last training session for the players and staff, who had been together for almost one year and three months. A group photo was taken as they prepared for one last match together as a team.

In the afternoon, coach IKEDA Futoshi and SUGISAWA Mihoshi attended the official press conference, where they expressed their enthusiasm for their second consecutive final against Spain. Coach Ikeda described that the experience accumulated throughout the tournament had helped the growth of his team, saying, “We have grown with each match. We won through a tough group stage, and the players kept trying to open new doors in the knockout stage.” When asked about their opponent in the final, the coach mentioned, “We are delighted to be competing against a country with a great football culture, and to share a great time with them tomorrow.” Sugisawa also commented, “I am honoured to be in the final. I will strive for victory while having fun playing with this wonderful team.” Meanwhile, Spanish coach Pedro LOPEZ paid tribute to Japan, saying, “We are rivals, but I enjoy watching Japan play. Tomorrow we will fight with all our means,” and pledged to give their all in the final.

Spain drew with Brazil in their first group stage match, but then went on to win every match within regulation time to reach the final. Led by Inma GABARRO, who tops the scoring charts with seven goals so far, the Spanish side is a well organised team that is based on high individual skills. The FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup Costa Rica 2022™ final is scheduled to kick-off on Sunday 28 August at 20:00 local time (Monday 29 at 11:00 in Japan), and the match with be broadcasted live on J SPORTS and BS Fuji.

Coach and Players' Comments

IKEDA Futoshi, Head Coach of U-20 Japan Women's National Team
Spain consist of players with great skills and athleticism. They have solid players in key positions, and I have the impression that they are capable of utilising the pitch effectively to keep the ball moving. They are led by the same coach who we faced four years ago, so even though they are a different team, I am thinking that their overall image is similar to what we saw back then. We don’t know how this is going to pan out, but with this being the final, I am sure both teams are going to try to showcase what they have built up leading to this match. With that being said, I hope our players can make the necessary adjustments once the match kicks-off. This team has fought and grown through a tough group stage. They have shown great improvements in terms of adaptability, responsiveness, quality of communication, and maturity. The World Cup is a battle between countries, but it is also a battle between people who truly love football, and I am proud of the way the players have shown their appreciation, respect, and care for their fellow teammates.

DF #3 NAGAE Ibuki (AC Nagano Parceiro Ladies)
After spending the past year and a half as a team, tomorrow is going to be our last match as a team, so we hope to showcase our best performance to finish our journey on a high note. Spain is similar to Japan in many ways. Their number nine and 11 are very skilled and fast. Number nine in particular is the top scorer of the tournament, but we will not let her score tomorrow. In the last few matches, our opponents tended to pick up their pace in the second half, so how we defend in the second half will be key. We are expecting another tough match, so we hope to defend tenaciously. Our offence has made great efforts to contribute to the team’s defence in the closing stages of our matches, so we hope to help our offence by keeping a clean sheet in the final.

MF #15 AMANO Suzu (INAC Kobe Leonessa)
We were forced to be in the defensive end for a long time against Brazil, so I was focused on intercepting the ball in the midfield and trying to apply pressure against the opposing forwards. Everyone was celebrating after the match, but once we returned to the dressing room, we started talking about our next match against Spain. It didn’t feel that way in our preparation camp in Liberia, but once the matches got under way, time seemed to fly by, which means that I am having a great time. I think it has been fulfilling because we have been repeating the cycle of practising together and analysing the opposing countries in preparation for the matches, and then demonstrating this in each match.

FW #11 HAMANO Maika (INAC Kobe Leonessa)
I am glad we were able to win against Brazil, but I wish we could have scored more goals in the first half. In our match against Spain, we will try to raise the quality of our plays in the final third to claim the world title. We are aware that we cannot compete in a physical battle against players abroad, so we must find ways to use their momentum in our favour. The two forwards are always conscious of where we position ourselves and are always making eye contact on the pitch.

FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup Costa Rica 2022™

Tournament Dates: Wed. 10 - Sun. 28 August 2022

Group Stage
1st Match: Thu. 11 August 14:00 vs U-20 Netherlands Women's National Team
2nd Match: Sun. 14 August 11:00 vs U-20 Ghana Women's National Team
3rd Match: Wed. 17 August 17:00 vs U-20 USA Women's National Team
Knockout Stage
Quarterfinals: Sun. 21 August 20:00 vs U-20 France Women’s National Team
Semi-finals: Thu. 25 August 20:00 vs U-20 Brazil Women’s National Team
Final: Sun. 28 August 20:00 vs U-20 Spain Women’s National Team
*Time shown in local time

Tournament Information