Japan vs Paraguay

Japan’s 2024 Summer Olympic Games campaign gets underway at Matmut Atlantique against Paraguay.

Despite qualifying for a record-breaking eighth consecutive Olympic Games, Japan’s long journey to Paris may not have a happy ending. After Parma’s Zion Suzuki and Real Sociedad’s Takefusa Kubo failed to gain permission from their clubs to join the Olympic team, head coach Go Oiwa must rely on a depleted 18-man squad that doesn’t feature any over-23 player. Confidence stems from a 1-0 win against Uzbekistan in the final of this year’s AFC under-23 Asian Cup that helped them qualify for the tournament. Moreover, Japan’s rich Olympic tradition has seen them secure fourth-place finishes in two of the last three editions, most recently losing 3-1 to Mexico in the third-place playoff in 2020 as a host nation.

On the other hand, Paraguay’s return to the Olympic Games after a 20-year hiatus comes less than a month after the senior national team bowed out of the 2024 Copa America group stages. However, the last time Paraguay played at the Olympics, they made it to the grand final, only to lose 1-0 to Argentina in Athens. They started their tournament with a goal-glutted 4-3 win against none other than Japan. With history backing them for success, Paraguay will look to prevent their triumph at the CONMEBOL Pre-Olympic Tournament go in vain. La Albirroja can’t afford to take anything for granted, especially following a dismal 2-1 defeat to the Dominican Republic in March’s warm-up fixture.