Japan vs North Korea
Japan are still on course to repeat here in the 2023 Asian Games because they have yet to lose a single game. However, they’ll face another unbeaten squad for all the marbles in North Korea this Friday at the Yellow Dragon Sports Center.
It depends on who you ask, but the semi-finals match between Japan and China was either tense or exciting. For SBOTOP football fans, of course, it’s exciting because they get to see a lot of Asian Games 2023 highlights. But for Japan, they will feel lucky that they survived that 4-3 result.
On the other hand, North Korea’s confidence is at an all-time high because they just brushed aside Uzbekistan 8-0 in the other semi-finals contest.
Both nations have brought home the Asian Games trophy before, so they know what it takes. But which team do you think will win it all this time?
Talking Points
Japan’s learning experience
Michihisa Kano said recently that they brought an inexperienced group to the Asian Games. The U-19 manager, who had to fill in for World Cup coach Futoshi Ikeda in the Asian Games, made this admission following their 4-3 win over China in the semi-finals.
“We have a lot of new and young players who are getting their first experience of top football here. This is a great experience for our young players, and I feel that they will help take Japanese women’s football forward,” said Kano.
The Nadeshiko started off brightly as they went up 4-1 in the first half, with Yoshino Nakashima, Momoko Tanikawa, Remina Chiba, and Toko Koga all finding the back of the net. However, China made a game of it after the halftime break.
Following Linlin Wang’s first-half goal, Zhang Linyan and Yang Lina tacked on two more to keep it close, although they ultimately failed to find the equaliser to push the game to a penalty shootout.
Remina Chiba is the only holdover from Japan’s Women’s World Cup squad that eventually lost against Sweden in the quarter-finals. With six Asian Games goals, the 24-year-old forward is expected to bring her A-game against North Korea on Friday.
Haruka Osawa, who also has six Asian Games goals, will join Remina Chiba up front. Osawa and Chiba have great chemistry in the final third because they’re also teammates with their mother club, JEF United Chiba.
Mami Ueno, Yuzuho Shiokoshi, Momoko Tanikawa, and Kotono Sakakibara will also have to be in their best form to boost their Asian Games 2023 odds against North Korea. In this tournament, the four of them have 16 goals combined.
Kim Kyong-Yong is North Korea’s superstar
Kim Kyong-Yong is running away with the Asian Games Golden Boot award, and it’s not even close. The 21-year-old forward is scoring goals for fun, with 11 goals and counting.
During the semi-finals, Kim Kyong-Yong scored four goals total. Hong Song-Ok, An Myong-Song, Ri Hak, and Kim Hye-Yong joined Kim in the scoring binge, as they completely outclassed a toothless Uzbekistan side.
Kim Kyong-Yong scores her goals in a variety of ways. She uses her electric pace to beat her opponents, but she can also score volleys from a distance or even outjump opposing centre-backs for thumping headers despite her slight frame.
And she has also been North Korea’s default penalty-kick taker, finishing off those kicks with ease and with no signs of nervousness.
Kim Kyong-Yong has been the central figure in North Korea’s success, and she will need to weave her magic against Japan on Friday.
History
As mentioned earlier, Japan and North Korea have won the Asian Games before.
Two-time champions Japan won it in 2010 and 2018, and they also managed a top four finish in all of their previous appearances.
As for North Korea, they have won it three times, including back-to-back in 2002 and 2006 (2014 being the most recent). The Pyongyang-based side has also finished within the top four in all of their previous outings except in 1994 and 2018.
North Korea are level with China for being the winningest country at this particular competition, with three golds, two silvers, and one bronze each. Japan haven’t done so badly themselves with two golds, four silvers, and two bronzes.
Overall, these two nations have squared off in 15 games across all competitions. North Korea have the slight edge with six wins, whereas Japan have five wins along with four draws.
Their first meeting was in the Women’s Four Nations Tournament, where North Korea recorded a narrow 1-0 victory, and their last encounter was in the 2018 Asian Games quarter-finals where Japan won 2-1.
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