The Japanese national soccer team won the 100th game of the national team coach, Hajime Moriyasu.
Japan won 3-0 in the A-match friendly match against Bolivia at the National Stadium in Tokyo on the 18th with relay goals from Daichi Kamada (Crystal Palace), Shuto Machino (Borussia Mönchengladbach) and Keito Nakamura (Stadrance) in the second half. Japan, which won 2-0 against Ghana on the 14th, finished the last two A-match series of this year with two consecutive wins without losing a point. Last month, he won three consecutive games by tying a 3-2 come-from-behind victory over Brazil. Coach Moriyasu won his 100th A-match, raising expectations for 2026, the year of the World Cup.
Japan changed seven digits compared to the previous match against Ghana, which won 2-0. Only Takumi Minamino (AS Monaco), Takefusa Kubo (Real Sociedad), center back Shogo Taniguchi (Sintrawidan), and goalkeeper Tomoki Hayagawa (Kashima Antlers) started for the second consecutive game.
In the 3-4-2-1 formation, Ogawa Gogi (Nimeheon) stood on the one-top, and Minamino and Kubo took the second line of attack. Yukinari Sugawara (Southampton), Wataru Endo (Liverpool), Daichi Kamada (Crystal Palace) and Daichi Maeda (Celtic) lined up in midfield. Itakura Ko (Ajax), Taniguchi, and Seko Ayumu (Le Havre) made up the three-back. Hayagawa wore goalkeeper gloves.
Bolivia changed only two seats compared to the match against Korea (0-2 loss). Fernando Nava (Oriente Petroleo), Enso Monteiro (Auda), Miguel Terceros (America Minero) will take the three-top role, while Moise Villarroel (Blooming), Héctor Cuellar (Alway's Ready), and Gabriel Villamil (LDU Quito) will form the three-mids. Diego Medina (CSKA 1948), Marcelo Torrez (Santus U-20), Diego Arroyo (Shakhtar Donetsk) and Roberto Fernández (Akron Tolyati) made up the four-back, while Guilermo Biscara (Alyanna Lima) kept the goal.
Japan scored the first goal in the fourth minute of the first half to take the lead. Kubo's long cross from the right side to the other side of the penalty box was scored by Kamada with a left-footed shot that stabbed the bottom right of the goal after chest trapping.
Japan, which started the game in its favor, took the lead and pressed the Bolivian defense all the time. Sugawara, who received Kubo's pass in the 23rd minute, dug into the right side and crossed into the gate. Ogawa rushed in with good timing and connected it with a header, but hit the opponent's goalkeeper's hand and hit the crossbar. The spilled ball landed on Minamino's foot, but Minamino's shot slightly off the post.
30 minutes Bolivia had its first chance on the day. However, Nava's right footed shot went slightly out of the right side of the net. The first half ended with Japan leading by one goal.
Moriyasu brought Sugawara to the bench at half-time and put in a design REITs to make changes to the side. In the 13th minute of the second half, Maeda's back pass miss occurred. Fernandez, who caught the ball, tried to shoot from the left side of the penalty area, but Kamada saved it and escaped the crisis.
In the 20th minute, Fernandez's shot from the center of the penalty box was blocked by Taniguchi.
In the 22nd minute of the second half, when the attack was not resolved, Japan strengthened its offensive by removing all the resources of the first and second lines and putting in Kenko Nakamura, Ayase Ueda and Shuto Machino.
The replacement hit the mark. In the 27th minute of the second half, Doan stabbed a through pass to the right of the penalty box. Nakamura, who received the ball, quickly crossed, and Machino, who ran in front of the net, scored a goal.
Japan scored another goal in the 33rd minute after putting midfielder Fujita Joel in the 32nd minute. Nakamura opened the goal with a calm shot after controlling Ueda's low cross with his sole. Maeda fell out in the 37th minute of the second half and Keisuke Goto was put in. Bolivia sought a last-minute counterattack, but the attack was not easy. The game ended with a 3-0 victory for Japan.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
