Japan W vs Brazil W 30/07/18
30 July 2018
The 2018 Tournament of Nations as a friendly tournament that sees Brazilian, Australian, American, and Japanese women teams competing in a round-robin format has entered into the second round, with Japan looking to take on Brazil. Both sides have gone through a rough experience in the first round, as the Nadeshiko Japan suffered a heavy 4-2 defeat to the United States, which could have ended in a much worse scenario for the Asian selection if the USA head coach Jill Ellis hasn’t decided to replace Alex Morgan who scored a hat-trick. The similar situation happened to the Selecao, who lost to Australia by a two-goal margin, thanks to Debinha who scored a goal in the 79th minute when the Matildas already head a three-goal advantage. There’s no doubt that both teams are looking to improve in this match, especially when it comes to their defensive game, which particularly concerns Japan that failed to keep a clean sheet in four out of their last five encounters. The last time Japan and Brazil played against each other was last year at this exact tournament, and the match ended in a 1-1 draw.
According to the latest reports, both coaches will be able to count on all of their key players.