Japan vs Uruguay Live Football Score 24/03/2022

Japan vs Uruguay Live Football Score 24/03/2022

Japan and Uruguay will return to the field for the first time since their respective 2022 World Cup campaigns on Friday, with the two teams set to lock horns in a friendly encounter. Uruguay failed to make it out of the group stage in Qatar, but Japan progressed to the last-16 stage of the tournament, ultimately losing to Croatia on penalties following a 1-1 draw. Japan were hugely impressive in the group stage of the 2022 World Cup, progressing to the knockout round of the competition, beating both Germany and Spain en route to the final 16.

Japan will take on Uruguay in the first match of the 2023 Kirin Challenge Cup at the Japan National Stadium in Tokyo on Friday. Both teams will be returning to action after a three-month break. Japan will be a confident unit coming into this match, as they did well in the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The Samurai Blue beat European giants and former world champions, Germany and Spain. On the other hand, Uruguay will be desperate for a complete revival of the squad. Though they parted ways with the long-serving manager Oscar Tabarez ahead of the World Cup, it did not bring the desired results as the team could not even get past the group stage.

Japan was not very consistent in 2022, but they did manage to spring some surprises. Besides the wins over Germany and Spain in Qatar, Hajime Moriyasu’s team had also handed Ghana a 4-1 thrashing and defeated fellow Asian giants South Korea 3-0 – all in the span of one year. Their last fixture was the round of 16 World Cup tie against Croatia, where they did well to restrict the opponents to a 1-1 stalemate before losing out on penalties. Japan’s last outing against a South American team was back in September, incidentally, in the 2022 edition of the same tournament. It was a 0-0 draw against Ecuador. Uruguay might have won their last match, which was a 2-0 World Cup victory against Ghana, but their recent performances have not been up to the mark at all. They went out 0-2 against Portugal in Qatar and could only play out a goalless stalemate against South Korea.

Before the World Cup, La Celeste also suffered a shock 0-1 defeat against Iran and was held to a draw by the United States of America. Marcelo Broli, the U-20 manager, has been roped in as the interim head coach and he will look to bring changes in the team’s fortunes. The head-to-head records are inclined in favour of Uruguay. These two teams have met eight teams previously, where La Celeste has won four games, with the Samurai Blue winning on only two occasions. The other two matches ended in draws. The last meeting was in Brazil, back in the 2019 Copa America. That fixture ended in a 2-2 draw, where Koji Miyoshi scored a brace for Moriyasu’s team, while a Luis Suarez penalty and a Jose Maria Gimenez goal helped Uruguay snatch a point.

Veteran centre-back Sebastian Coates could be getting his 50th cap for Uruguay Moriyasu was seen using the 3-4-3 formation in Qatar and we could see a continuation of the same here. The experienced Daniel Schmidt is expected to be under the sticks, though the backline could be a new one. With Maya Yoshida, Hiroki Sakai, and Yuto Nagatomo all left out of the squad, Ko Itakura and Hiroki Ito are likely to be defensive mainstays. Besides that, Koki Machida could make her national debut, after impressing for Royal Union SG in the Belgian league. Like Machida, youngsters Yukinari Sugawara and Kashif Bangnagande have been doing well for their respective teams, AZ Alkmaar and Tokyo. They could play on the flanks. Kaoru Mitoma, who is ripping the Premier League apart with Brighton & Hove Albion, is likely to have the dual responsibility of creating and converting chances, alongside Ritsu Doan and Takuma Asano.

On the other hand, it is expected that Broli will be trying to avoid unnecessary risks in his first Test as the senior team manager and go with the tried and tested 4-4-2 formation. The veteran trio of Diego Godin, Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani have all been left out. Meanwhile, Darwin Nunez will be unavailable after getting a knock in his last match for Liverpool, whereas Tottenham Hotspur’s Rodrigo Bentancur is yet to recover from his injury. Experienced centre-back Sebastian Coates could get his 50th cap, whereas striker Jonathan Rodriguez could make his first appearance since 2021. Samurai Blue took the lead against Croatia in their knockout round contest, but the match ultimately finished 1-1, with Croatia triumphing 3-1 on penalties to progress to the final eight of the competition.

It was a big step forward for Japan, though, with the national team looking to a bright future, but their immediate focus is on back-to-back friendlies against Uruguay and Colombia. Head coach Hajime Moriyasu has actually made a host of changes to his squad for the upcoming fixtures, with a number of players set to be given opportunities to earn a regular spot moving forward. Japan have only ever met Uruguay on eight occasions, winning twice and losing four times, with their last friendly coming in October 2018, when Samurai Blue recorded a 4-3 victory over their South American opponents. Uruguay picked up four points from their three group matches at the 2022 World Cup, but it was not enough for them to progress to the knockout round of the competition.

The national team’s last match was the 2-0 victory over Ghana on December 2, and they now have back-to-back games against Japan and South Korea on March 24 and March 28 respectively. Uruguay are yet to appoint a permanent replacement for Diego Alonso, who left the managerial position after the World Cup, but Marcelo Broli, who is the current manager of Uruguay Under-20s, will lead the team for their next two matches. There is certainly a fresh look about the current squad, with Diego Godin, Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani among those not involved, meaning that there are now spots open in the final third of the field. The Sky Blues will be expecting to make a strong impression at the 2024 Copa America before switching their attention to the next World Cup, which will take place in 2026.

Japan will have an inexperienced defence for this match, with the likes of Hiroki Ito and Koki Machida set to be included in the starting XI on Friday. There will be plenty of familiar names further forward, though, with Wataru Endo, Daichi Kamada, Junya Ito, Takuma Asano and Daizen Maeda expected to be in the side. Takehiro Tomiyasu, Maya Yoshida, Takumi Minamino, Yoshinori Muto and Yuya Osako are among those absent for various reasons, so there will be opportunities for a number of players to stake a claim moving forward. Uruguay, as mentioned, are without the three players who have made the most appearances for the national team throughout history – Godin, Suarez and Cavani.

There are actually seven uncapped players in the current squad, including 20-year-old forward Matias Arezo and Girona defender Santiago Bueno. Manchester United’s Facundo Pellistri is expected to start for Uruguay here, while there should also be spots for Sebastian Coates and Federico Valverde. Japan are set to play Uruguay at the Japan National Stadium on Friday in a friendly fixture. Japan come into this game on the back of a 1-1 (1-3p) loss to Zlatko Dalic’s Croatia in the World Cup. A first-half goal from Celtic attacker Daizen Maeda for Japan was canceled out by a second-half goal from Tottenham Hotspur wing-back Ivan Perisic. Croatia eventually triumphed on penalties. Uruguay, on the other hand, beat Ghana 2-0 in their most recent game. A first-half brace from Flamengo attacker Giorgian de Arrascaeta secured the win for Uruguay.

Japan possible starting lineup:
Schmidt; Itakura, Hashioka, Ito, Machida; Endo, Kamada, Ito, Mitoma; Asano, Maeda

Uruguay possible starting lineup:
Rochet; Gonzalez, Coates, Bueno, Vina; Vecino, Valverde, Ugarte; Pellistri, Gomez, Rodriguez