Tag Archives: Yuya Osako

Hajime Moriyasu Sceptical about Naming Strong Squad for Copa America

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.

Japan Go with Veterans for Friendlies against Panama and Uruguay

New Japanese coach Hajime Moriyasu has decided to call up as many as six veterans for the upcoming match against Uruguay and Panama. The 50-year-old will be leading Japan for the first time after recently assuming office. The pressure of winning the first game in charge appears to have made the 50-year-old go for the trusted option veteran players like Yuya Osako, Yuto Nagatomo, and Maya Yoshida. These players will be linking up with the 23 man squad named for the games against Panama and Uruguay. The first of those games will be against Panama at Niigata while the match against Uruguay will be at Saitama.

Moriyasu has been in charge of the Olympic and the senior team since July. He decided to go with a less experienced group of players for the games against Chile and Costa Rica. Even though Japan did not play against Chile due to an earthquake cancellation, the national team did take on Costa Rica in the subsequent friendly match and were able to get a comfortable 3-0 win. The next four matches for the Japanese national team happen to be at home and they provide a good opportunity for Moriyasu to settle into his role. The 50-year-old has a tough job of having to improve Japan, who were unable to reach the quarter-finals of the World Cup.