index – Page 4 – Japanese Soccer

LIVERPOOL PREPARE FOR A BUSY SUMMER

By index on Friday, March 27, 2020

Liverpool are expected to make a huge statement in the summer transfer window. The runaway league leaders will splash the cash in the summer, as they bid to build on their success, and try to keep up with other European elite teams.

The club have made two additions all through the season. They signed goalkeeper Adrian on a free transfer from West Ham in the summer. The Spaniard was the only arrival last summer. They added the second player during the winter transfer window. Takumi Minamino joined from RB Salzburg. The Japanese international started his career in Japanese football with Cerezo Osaka before making the move to European football. He moved to Austria with RB Salzburg in 2015. He left the Austrian Champions after 5 years to join Liverpool. The Japanese was the only outfield player to join the club since last summer.

Japanese Soccer

Gerrard feels ‘faultless’ Van Dijk deserves Ballon d’Or ahead of Messi

By index on Wednesday, January 15, 2020

Rangers head coach Steven Gerrard believes Virgil van Dijk deserves to win the Ballon d’Or ahead of Lionel Messi, given he was faultless with his performances during the Reds’ Champions League triumph. Van Dijk has been hugely instrumental for the Reds in the central defence since arriving from Southampton last year and he has continued the good form this term, where the Reds are comfortably at the top of the Premier League table.

Speaking in a press conference, Gerrard acknowledged that he is a huge admirer of Barcelona’s Messi and he is among those, who would want the Argentine to enjoy every success. However, he added that the Ballon d’Or should be presented to Van Dijk, given he was the catalyst towards ending the Reds’ seven-year wait for a trophy.

Japanese Soccer

JAPAN CONTINUE IMPRESSIVE RUN OF FORM

By index on Sunday, December 1, 2019

Japan continued their unbeaten record in the World Cup 2022 Asian qualifiers with a 2-0 victory away to Kyrgystan. The match which was dominated by Japan saw the away team wear their new clear sky kit for the first time.

Kyrgyzstan was eager to make the game difficult for their more illustrious opponents by defending deep and looking to hit on the counter. This made for a testing opening to the game where the home team missed a glaring opportunity in front of goal.

Japanese Soccer

REAL MADRID TRANSFER POLICY GEARED TOWARDS YOUTH

By index on Tuesday, October 8, 2019

Real Madrid have endured a mixed start to the season with the latest Champions League draw against Club Brugge serving as a reminder to the failings of the club. However, the future appears to be bright for the club due to some key investments by club president Florentino Perez.

The Wily administrator brought the era of the galacticos in the early 2000s with the signing of high profile players like Ronaldo, Figo, Beckham, and Zidane. His second return to the club saw him adopt a similar objective with the signings of Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Xabi Alonso and Gareth Bale.

Japanese Soccer

Qatari Vision Starting to Pay DividendsLike Japan, ClaimsMilutinovic

By index on Friday, September 27, 2019

Qatar have been able to begin the competitive round of games for the new season in style. In the team opened up the World Cup 2022 qualification and AFC 2023 Asian Cup preliminary qualification games in style. The team was able to overcome Afghanistan with a 6-0 victory at the Al Sadd Stadium. Even though this is not one of the locations for the World Cup 2022 stadiums, it still holds a key role in the Qatari football space. After recently winning the Asian Cup in January, Qatar were hosting the first home match and it was extra special as a result.

It should be remembered that South Korea and Japan were the two best teams from Asia when the World Cup was hosted in this region back in 2002. Now, Qatar have been elevated to the status of Asian champions and they will be entering into the World Cup on merit rather than just being hosts.Bora Milutinovic has been credited with taking Qatar to great heights and he says that the vision of the Qatari people is a strong factor behind the success of the team. He pointed out that Qatar were able to lift the Asian U19 Championship only a few years ago.

Japanese Soccer

Shinji Okazaki confirms he is leaving Leicester City this summer

By index on Monday, June 10, 2019

Japanese footballer Shinji Okazaki has confirmed that he would be parting ways with Leicester City when the current season comes to a close. The 33-year-old has been with the Foxes for the past four years but he is prepared to take up a new challenge with the view of playing regularly in the centre-forward position.

Speaking to Japanese outlet Nikkei, Okazaki acknowledged that he has not been satisfied with his time at the east Midlands outfit despite the fact that he was crowned a Premier League crown during his first season. He added that he has become fed up with the role of linking up play between the midfield and the attack, and would prefer to move somewhere else where he is assured of the striker’s position.

Japanese Soccer

Japan to Play Opposite El Salvador in Copa America Warmup Match

By index on Monday, May 6, 2019

The national team of Japanese men will be seen playing an international friendly match opposite El Salvador. The match between Japanese and El Salvador will take place on the 9th of June 9. This announcement has been made by the Japan Football Association (JFA) on Wednesday. It is the top regulatory body of football in Japan. The match is scheduled to take place at the Hitomebore Stadium Miyagi.

The team of Japan is currently ranked at No. 26 in the world ranking chart. On the other hand, El Salvador is at No. 71. There is a huge difference in the performance of both teams and therefore, it would be interesting to see who performs well. This match is taking place at the Hitomebore Stadium Miyagi, which is located in the northeastern part of Japan. It will be the final match of Samurai Blue before competing at the Copa America present in Brazil, where the team will play as the invited country.

Japanese Soccer

Hajime Moriyasu Sceptical about Naming Strong Squad for Copa America

By index on Saturday, April 6, 2019

Japan national team boss Hajime Moriyasu claims that it will not be easy to build a strong team for the corporate America. There is a lot of hope that Japan will be taking the strongest squad possible for the upcoming Copa America that will take place in Brazil. There is no obligation for overseas clubs to let the Japanese players become available for this tournament. FIFA have sanctioned a date between June 14 and July 7 for this tournament. The clubs that are part of the CONMEBOL federation only have an expectation with regard to the availability of top international stars.

For this reason,Moriyasu is quite sceptical about naming a strong squad since he does not expect many of the clubs to head into the request. After a strenuous 2018 summer, there is expectation from the club’s for a more relaxed summer in which players get the opportunity to rejuvenate for a great club campaign. Japan is taking part in the Copa America for only the second time and they are a nation invited for this purpose. However, Japan will also be joined by Asian Cup winner for the current campaign and the World Cup 2022 hosts. One of the first to reject Japan’s desire is Werder Bremen, who have denied Yuya Osako the chance to participate in the tournament.

Japanese Soccer

Manchester City announce first partnership with Japanese football

By index on Wednesday, March 13, 2019

Japanese football is all set to receive a major boost with Manchester City set to visit the country as part of their pre-season tour in 2019. This will be the first time City will visit Japan and they are up against Yokohama F. Marinos as part of the first-ever EuroJapan Cup. It is not a surprise that City are up against this Japanese team, who happen to a sister concern of the group that owns Manchester City. This inaugural match will take place at the Nissan Stadium on July 27.

It is expected that Manchester City will be playing against multiple Japanese teams in the coming weeks. Chief operating officer Omar Berrada claimed that the club are delighted to be stepping into Japanese football, which happens to provide a major fan base even as City start to accumulate a lot of success. Yokohama F. Marinos’ chief executive Ryoji Kurosawa, meanwhile, claimed that the match is one to look forward to considering that both teams are capable of scoring plenty of goals when they go up against each other. Since both teams play an attacking style of football, the supporters can enjoy a great game, according to the manager.

Japanese Soccer

The Epitome of Pure Class-Japanese Football Team

By index on Tuesday, February 26, 2019

On 1st February 2019 celebration vibe was pumped up when Qatar beat the team from Japan in the finals of the Asia Cup with a scoreline of 3 – 1. The first thanks for this massive success of Qatar would go to Abdul-Aziz Hatem, Almoez Ali and Afif Akram.

When everyone was busy celebrating the victory of Qatar and giving a heartfelt congratulation, Japan in background proved that their pure class attitude doesn’t depend on their victory or failure. After the game without stepping their shoes into negative vibes, they moved out by leaving the dressing fully cleaned up. They also left a respectful and sweet thank you note in Japanese, Arabic, and English.