Doan, Mitoma Named in Japan Team for the First Games after Qatar

Japan’s World Cup 2022 Qatar star performers Ritsu Doan and Kaoru Mitoma had been named in Hajime Moriyasu’s 26-man team announced Wednesday for their future friendlies against Colombia and Uruguay. There had been 10 changes from the World Cup team of the manager with veteran defenders YutoNagamoto, Maya Yoshida, and Hiroki Sakai being noteworthy absentees, while Reo Hatate and KyogoFuruhasi, the Celtic duo stayed neglected.

RikuHanda, RyotarTsunoda, and KashifBangnagande, three young J-League defenders received their first call-ups along with Keito Nakamura, the LASK attacker. He has been fantastic in scoring form in Austria. Moriyasu mentioned in a press conference that he wants to have a deeper and bigger pool of players that will enable them to have a stronger national team in time to come. He stated that he wants players who got their call-ups for making their presence felt.

Japan’s first match was against Uruguay since the World Cup 2022 before they took on fellow South American Colombian 4 days later in Osaka’s Yodoko Sakura Stadium. After he expressed his hope that the quality of raised when they are in possession, along with the clinical counterattacks they displayed in the wins in the group stage over Spain and Germany in Qatar, Moriyasu emphasized he is going to call up Samurai Blue expecting whenever he considers it right for the build-up to the World Cup 2026.

He said that there are no specific criteria for everything in their decision to select. He wants people to understand that the national team activity is not only this time. According to him, they will have the best activity every time for making the most robust team in 2026. He is watching all Celtic games and believes they would be given their abilities for the team in case they are chosen.