NEWS

The Nadeshiko Japan women’s team are aiming to retain their East Asian Women’s Championship title by starting the biannual tournament with a win over China in their opening match on Saturday at Ajinomoto Stadium in Tokyo.

“We will work hard to win back-to-back titles,” Nadeshiko Japan coach Norio Sasaki said Thursday after his side’s training session at the venue. “As we don’t play at home so often, our players and I are looking forward to playing here this time around.”
Sasaki added: “This is an important tournament for us to prepare for the Asian Cup in May, which is also a World Cup qualifying tournament.”
Following the opening match with China, who Japan beat in the quarterfinals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the Nadeshiko will meet Chinese Taipei on February 11 at the National Stadium and Korea Republic on February 13 at Ajinomoto Stadium.
“China are a good, strong side to play,” said Sasaki. “They changed their team around after the Olympics and now have players of higher quality, and they’ve played a number of international matches together. We should work hard on our defense and be careful about their set plays.”
The Nadeshiko Japan won a five-nation friendly tournament in Chile last month and Sasaki said that the newcomers and the experienced players have combined well both on and off the pitch.
“Our squad came together as a unit during the Chilean tournament. I hope we can develop our game more during this competition,” the 51-year-old coach stated.
The 20-strong squad announced Thursday features young forward Mana Iwabuchi, who was named the MVP in the 2008 FIFA Women’s Under-17 World Cup as well as the 2009 AFC Under-19 Asian Championship.
She is joined by midfielders Homare Sawa of Washington Freedom and Aya Miyama of Los Angeles Sol, as well as forward Shinobu Ohno and her Beleza teammate defender Yukari Kinga.
Sawa said, “We know the weight of each match played before our fans at home as we don’t have many opportunities to play in Japan. Our fans always cheer us on and give us extra power. Hopefully, we can win the title along with the men’s team.”
The Nadeshiko captain added, “This group of players haven’t been together so long, so it will be important in this East Asian competition to show what we gained from the Chile tournament and from our training.”
Japan have a 4-0-1 win-draw-loss record against China in their last five encounters.
Miyama said, “China are a traditional powerhouse and we respect them whenever we play them. We are playing at home but this is an international tournament and we should set our focus on that.”
China women’s team coach Shang Ruihua commented, “Like the men’s team, the Japanese women’s team have shown development in the last few years, especially the mental part and their organizational skills, in addition to their technique.
“I think how much we can overcome their strong points will decide the outcome of the game. And if our key players – Ma Xiaosu, Xu Yuan, Bi Yan and Han Duan – play well, we have a good chance. I want them to show their ability in a pressure situation.”

Nadeshiko squad:

Goalkeepers—Nozomi Yamago (Urawa Reds Ladies), Miho Fukumoto (Okayama Yunogo Belle), Ayumi Kaihori (INAC Kobe Leonessa)
Defenders—Akiko Sudo (Nippon TV Beleza), Yukari Kinga (Nippon TV Beleza), Kyoko Yano (Urawa Reds Ladies), Azusa Iwashimizu (Nippon TV Beleza), Aya Sameshima (TEPCO Mareeze), Kana Osafune (TEPCO Mareeze), Saki Kumagai (Urawa Reds Ladies)
Midfielders—Homare Sawa (Washington Freedom), Aya Miyama (Los Angeles Sol), Mami Yamaguchi (Atlanta Beat), Manami Nakano (Okayama Yunogo Belle), Rumi Utsugi (Nippon TV Beleza), Nanase Kiryu (Nippon TV Beleza), Yuika Sugasawa (Albirex Niigata Ladies)
Forwards—Shinobu Ohno (Nippon TV Beleza), Megumi Takase (INAC Kobe Leonessa), Mana Iwabuchi (Nippon TV Menina)
Coach—Norio Sasaki