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- Nagatomo (Kyoto) defeated China and responded to the cheers of his supporters
[Yongin (Korea) 12th = Nagata Jun]Japan (17th in the FIFA ranking) defeated China (94th in the 2nd place) 2-0 to make it their second consecutive win, putting the team at the top of the tournament. With all the starting players being replaced in the first game, in the 11th minute of the first half, forward Hosoya Masahiro (23, Kashiwa) scored with his right foot to take the lead, and in the 18th minute of the second half, midfielder Mochizuki Henry Kaiki (23, Machida) scored the first goal in the national team. Hosoya, who was entrusted with the number 10 as the ace of the domestic group, took revenge in the previous tournament, which ended up not finishing goals, and proposed to become a member of the 2026 World Cup North and Central America Tournament. The final third round will be competing with its arch-rival South Korea on the 15th, the host country. ◇ ◇ ◇ Defender Nagatomo, who is aiming to compete in the World Cup for the fifth time, is now on his first pitch in about two years and seven months. This is the first time in 950 days since the World Cup match against Croatia in Qatar on December 5th, 2020, and this is his 143rd match in total. Although he was 170cm, he showed a stable play on the left side of the three-back. “It's extremely pride and honorable to fight with the Japanese flag on his shoulder. I've only decided to fight with all my heart once I've come out,” the captain said with a fulfilling expression. It was 90 minutes, proving that it was a valuable force. On defense, he barely let the opponent do their jobs and also showed active participation in the attack. Ramos Rui, who played at age 303, surpassed Ramos Rui's 38-year-old appearance, is the third highest in all-time appearance at age 181 days. Over the past year, he was humiliated as a member of the team for 12 consecutive games, and said, “It's been too painful. But I've come up with it many times. You might have thought 'Nagatomo' is over,' but I trusted it. I'll do my best to play in a way that will surprise you.” While keeping his sights on the World Cup a year from now, I was hoping for a place where I could grow.
