NEWS

Japan women’s Under-17 coach Hiroshi Yoshida on Tuesday named a 21-strong squad for the FIFA Women’s Under-17 World Cup slated for October 28-November 16 in New Zealand.

The squad will get together for a training camp before flying to New Zealand for their final tune-up sessions ahead of the tournament.
Playing in Group C, Japan will face the United States on October 30 and France on November 2, both in Hamilton, before meeting Paraguay on November 5 in Christchurch.
In the 16-team tournament, the top two finishers from each group will advance to the quarterfinals on November 9. The semifinals will take place on November 13, while the final and the third-place playoff will be held on November 16 in Auckland.

Squad:
Goalkeepers—Ayaka Saito (Tokiwagi Gakuen H.S.), Saki Nakamura (JFA Academy Fukushima), Sakiko Ikeda (Urawa Reds Jr. Youth Ladies)
Defenders—Nagisa Okuda (Kamimura Gakuen H.S.),  Natsuki Kishikawa (Urawa Reds Jr. Youth Ladies), Minami Ishida (Tokoha Gakuen Tachibana H.S.), Minori Chiba (Urawa Reds Jr. Youth Ladies), Kozue Chiba (Tokiwagi Gakuen H.S.), Marika Ohshima (Kamimura Gakuen H.S.)
Midfielders—Natsumi Kameoka (JFA Academy Fukushima), Takako Sugiyama (Tokoha Gakuen Tachibana H.S.), Yuko Takeyama (Urawa Reds Jr. Youth Ladies), Yuiko Inoue (JEF United Ichihara-Chiba Ladies), Saori Takahashi (Nippon TV Menina), Chiaki Shimada (Nippon TV Menina), Haruka Hamada (JFA Academy Fukushima), Yoko Tanaka (JFA Academy Fukushima)
Forwards—Kei Yoshioka (FC Victories), Chinatsu Kira (Kamimura Gakuen H.S.), Akane Saito (Tokiwagi Gakuen H.S.), Mana Iwabuchi (Nippon TV Menina)
Coach—Hiroshi Yoshida