[Suiwan (Korea) 14th = Nagata Atsushi]The Japanese national team (17th in the FIFA ranking) will face the Korean national team (23rd in the 2018 race for a consecutive victory in the East Asia E-1 Championship on the 15th.
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On the 14th, we practiced in Suwon City the day before. I adjusted it for about an hour and a half in the rain. At the last tournament in 2012, MVP midfielder Soma Yuki (28, Machida) put his efforts into winning the tournament with his own performance, saying, “We managed to adjust it well. The condition is good, so I want to explode tomorrow.”
The match is between two wins, but Japan, which is outperformed by the goal difference, will win the championship in a row if it is drawn or higher. Still, they approach the match with the intention of winning and determining the championship. “If we're mentally unsatisfied to draw from the beginning, we start to feel anxious when we concede a goal. We want to attack and win with our own strength.” The attacker, who scored the first goal in the last match against Japan and Korea, also taught him the importance of starting the match and opening goal. Soma himself has participated in the tournament twice in the past, and last time he scored three points and won, but in the 2019 tournament, which was held in Korea, he lost 0-1 in the Japan-Korea match against the past 2019 tournament, which was held in Korea, he missed the championship. “We were pushed by the initial momentum and the atmosphere of the away game, and we conceded a goal in the first half. I hope we can use the lessons from those 2019.” His teammates not only input from that time, but also information about Machida's teammates, Korean forward Na Sang-ho and Oh Se-hoon. He plans to do everything he can to help them win by saying, “I told them about situations they're not good at.”
Soma, who won the MVP with three goals last time, is expected to win consecutive awards at this tournament. In the first game against Hong Kong, he assisted forward Jermain's first and second goals, contributing to a good start. He feels confident in his condition and has a strong desire to become the lead role, saying, “I want to lead the team or get some glaring results. I think showing my strength will lead to victory, so I hope I can get a match for him, and I hope I can play on par with that.” Last time, he was one of the players who went from this tournament to the World Cup. It has achieved a prominent result of the Japan-Korea battle, and paved the way again.
