Japan face Honduras test in Group E fixture


Team Udayavani, Oct 7, 2017, 12:33 PM IST

Guwahati: Asian giants Japan will eye a positive start when they lock horns with Honduras in the FIFA U-17 World Cup here tomorrow.

The Japanese, who have reached the quarter-finals in 1993, when they hosted the tournament as debutants, will take it one match at a time and are not thinking beyond their tournament opener at the moment.

In the 2011 edition, they created a flutter by topping a group that included world football heavyweights Argentina, France and Jamaica on their way to the quarterfinals.

Japan entered the tournament after playing quite a few friendlies and an intense preparatory phase.

They will gain from the fact that they have a very seasoned coach in Yoshiro Moriyama, a former Japan defender who has vast experience playing and coaching in the J-League.     

The Asian nation secured a ticket to India by virtue of an impressive performance in the 2016 AFC Under-16 championship.

Without an iota of doubt, the player to watch out for is striker Takefusa Kubo. Dubbed as the Japanese Messi, he is the youngest player to score in the J-League and represented Japan at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in May this year.

Another forward, Cerozo Osaka, also has the skills to make an impression.

The South American nation, Honduras have managed to regularly qualify for the tournament since 2007. They were knocked out of the first two editions but managed to reach the quarterfinals in 2013 in the UAE.

In between, they missed the 2011 edition and failed to register a single win in the last edition in Chile two years ago.

In the qualification race, Honduras finished second behind Costa Rica in the Central American zone qualifiers to reach the CONCACAF U-17 Championship.

At the CONCACAF U-17 Championship 2017, they were in Group A with hosts Panama, Curacao and Haiti.

Although they went down 2-4 to Panama, victories against Curacao and Haiti paved the way for qualification to the classification round.

They were defeated 0-3 by USA in their final game but a 7-1 drubbing of Cuba confirmed their entry in the tournament proper.

Udayavani is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel and stay updated with the latest news.

Top News

BCCI vs PCB spar on CT venue as Naqvi denies receiving any official note from Indian board

After Yogi’s ‘batenge, katenge’ slogan, PM pitches for unity with ‘Ek hai, toh safe hai’ message

“Coming soon.. 2025”: KL Rahul and Athiya Shetty announce first pregnancy

Mangaluru: Unauthorized bus stops at signals fuel traffic woes and safety concerns

SC notice to Karnataka, DK Shivakumar on CBI plea against withdrawal of consent by state govt

Will remain active in politics till my last breath: JD(S) patriarch & ex-PM Deve Gowda

BJP calls Congress govt ‘laughing stock’ as ‘samosa politics’ heats up in Himachal

Related Articles More

UP women’s body proposes men shouldn’t tailor women’s clothes or cut their hair

After Yogi’s ‘batenge, katenge’ slogan, PM pitches for unity with ‘Ek hai, toh safe hai’ message

Bank fraud: ED seizes jewellery, cash worth over Rs 1 cr in raids against Bhopal-based company, directors

No greater feeling than serving those in need: Outgoing CJI D Y Chandrachud

CJI Chandrachud: A legacy of landmark verdicts that shaped society and some controversy too

MUST WATCH

Gho Pooja in Deepavali Festival

Melukote Deepavali

Ganapathi Co-operative Society Ltd

Udayavani Chinnara Banna 2024

Annapoorna Aahar | Food Places In Mysore


Latest Additions

BCCI vs PCB spar on CT venue as Naqvi denies receiving any official note from Indian board

Use Carnatic music to promote Kannada language: Nirmala Sitharaman

Udupi: Car collides with bike; Rider injured

UP women’s body proposes men shouldn’t tailor women’s clothes or cut their hair

NSE, BSE to be closed on Nov 20 for Maharashtra assembly polls

Thanks for visiting Udayavani

You seem to have an Ad Blocker on.
To continue reading, please turn it off or whitelist Udayavani.