Japan aims to wrap up their qualification to the round of 16 with a game to spare against Costa Rica on Wednesday.
JAP-W vs CRC-W Match Details
Date: Wednesday, 26 July 2023
Time: 10:30 (IST) / 15:30 (ACT)
Venue: Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin
JAP-W vs CRC-W Match Preview
Japan played some of the best football at this stage to secure a huge 5-0 win over Zambia in their 2023 Women’s World Cup opener. Hinata Miyazawa scored a stunning brace with Mina Tanaka, Jun Endo and substitute Riko Ueki scoring from a retaken penalty late in the match. It was the second consecutive game Japan scored five goals without reply after doing so against Panama in the last warm-up match against Panama. They could have ended more to the scoring had a series of goals were not chalked off or forwards blazing their effort from close range. The manner of victory was a morale-boosting one as Zambia was a side capable of upsets with their ferocious attack but the 2011 winners did not allow them to take even a single shot in the game. Such was the sheer dominance. Overall, Nadeshiko will be overly happy about their scoring spree which gives them confidence ahead of facing a top side like Spain in the final group match. Not before they take on Costa Rica who are coming off a 3-0 defeat to La Roja. Japan knows a win and a subsequent draw result in the other match will help them reach the knockouts while a draw will also be enough if Spain beat Zambia. It is obvious that Futoshi Ikeda's side will have victory on their mind only as they look to seal their task at the Dunedin Stadium.
Costa Rica defended valiantly against Spain but a lapse of concentration in a spell of ten minutes allowed Spain to score all their three goals in that period before the half-hour mark. It started with Valeria Del Campo turning a cross into her own net in the 21st minute with Aitana Bonmati and Esther Gonzalez’s strikes coming right after. Las Ticas had their goalkeeper Daniela Solera to thank to prevent the opposition from extending the score, especially in the second half. The 26-year-old made an outstanding 10 saves in the match and the team will rely on her shot-stopping while facing another highly technical side in Japan. Costa Rica’s problem will be Japan also being in ruthless scoring form as they hope not to exit the tournament early. They are in a poor run of form with just a win in the last 12 matches and nine defeats in that time. Changing it in one game that too against the former winners looks extremely unlikely. Las Ticas have also not won at the Women’s World Cup and managed only two draws. Still, they will take inspiration from their second-half performance against Spain and also that their men’s side pulled off a surprise 1-0 win over Japan after their heavy thrashing in the World Cup last year.
Recent Form (All Comp)
JAP-W: WWLWW
CRC-W: LLWLL
Recent Form (World Cup)
JAP-W: W
CRC-W: L
JAP-W vs CRC-W Predicted Lineups
JAP-W: Ayaka Yamashita; Rion Ishikawa, Saki Kumagai, Moeka Minami; Risa Shimizu, Fuka Nagano, Yui Hasegawa, Jun Endo; Aoba Fujino, Hinata Miyazawa; Mina Tanaka
CRC-W: Daniela Solera; Fabiola Villalobos, Mariana Benavides, Del Campo; Maria Coto, Gloriana Villalobos, Katherine Alvarado, Cristin Granados; Melissa Herrera, Maria Salas, Priscila Chinchilla
Also check out Japan Squad for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup and
JAP-W vs CRC-W Dream11 Team Prediction
GK: Solera (7.5)
DEF: Shimzu (8.5), Minami (8), Kumagai (8)
MID: Miyazawa (9), Alvardo (8.5), Hasegawa (8.5), M Herrera (8)
FW: Rodriguez (9), Tanaka (9), Endo (8.5)
Vice-captain: Jun Endo or Mina Tanaka
Captain: Hinata Miyazawa
