Will the Korea-Japan match be the first match played by the Korean national soccer team’s command tower as the successor to Paulo Bento (Portugal) coach?
In a situation where opponent candidates for A match in March are limited, a high-ranking official of the Japan Football Association mentioned that the Korea-Japan match is also worth considering.
According to Japanese media such as Sports Hochi, Sorimachi Yasuharu, technical director of the Japan Football Association, explained the situation related to the Japanese national team’s March A match opponent in an online interview with reporters after the technical committee meeting on the 2nd.
Japan is scheduled to play friendly matches with the national team on March 24 (Tokyo) and 28 (Osaka), the first FIFA A-Match Week (March 20-28) of this year.
Regarding Japan’s counterpart, Sorimachi said, “It has not been decided yet,” and “We are in the process of looking for a strong player.” He suggested the standard of the opponent country, saying, “FIFA ranking is higher than Japan, and we are grateful to the country for being a regular player in the World Cup.”
Currently, Japan’s FIFA ranking is 20th, and Korea is 25th.
In the interview that day, when asked about the possibility of a match against Korea, although the FIFA ranking is lower than Japan, Chairman Sorimachi replied, “I think it is worth considering because Korea is a powerhouse that has advanced to the round of 16 in the World Cup.” 안전놀이터
It is not easy for Asian countries to choose opponents for friendly matches during the A-match period in March.
During this period, the 2024 European Football Championship (Euro 2024) qualifiers will be held in Europe. In the North and Central America-Caribbean region, the 2022-2023 season Nations League will be held, and in Africa, the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers will be held.
In the end, they have no choice but to find an A-match opponent in South America or Asian countries.
Likewise, the situation is not different for Korea, which is trying to play two friendly matches during the A-match period in March.
The Korea Football Association, which is looking for a successor to Bento, who laid down the lead of the Korean national team at the end of the 2022 Qatar World Cup, is promoting invitational matches against South American countries.
Among the 10 South American countries, 6 are candidates, excluding Argentina, which is preparing to host a warm-up match in its home country to celebrate the World Cup victory in Qatar, and Brazil, Chile, and Paraguay, which visited Korea in June last year.
Previously, South American media reported that Uruguay and Colombia would visit Korea and Japan in March to hold an evaluation match.
If both Uruguay and Colombia can visit Korea, it is difficult to hold a Korea-Japan match.