Japan expect tough Indonesia test with World Cup spot in reach / Photo: Philip FONG - AFP
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Japan expect tough Indonesia test with World Cup spot in reach
Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu said Thursday he expects a tough test against an Indonesian team filled with European-born players when the two sides clash in World Cup qualifying in Jakarta.
Japan are the leading team in Asia at 15th in the FIFA rankings and top qualifying Group C, with an unbeaten record after three wins and a draw.
A potential victory over Indonesia in front of 78,000 fans in the country's capital puts an eighth straight World Cup berth within reach.
Indonesia are clear underdogs for Friday's match, sitting in fifth out of six teams in their qualifying group, but they have earned spirited draws against Australia, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.
"Tomorrow's game will be very hard because the Indonesian players will be very defensive... so we have to play very aggressively," said Moriyasu.
"Our goal is to be the champion. Tomorrow we will fight very hard."
The top two from the three groups in the third stage of Asian qualifying will automatically reach the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada, with third and fourth going into another qualifying stage.
Japan made it to the last 16 of the 2022 World Cup, where they lost to Croatia on penalties, while Indonesia has only qualified once when it competed as the Dutch East Indies.
Japan captain and out-of-favour Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo said there wasn't an issue with his lack of playing time for his club, despite being used sparingly by new boss Arne Slot.
"There is no problem because I try very hard, so my condition is okay," said the 31-year-old midfielder, who moved to the English Premier League club from Germany's Stuttgart last year.
"I will do my best 100 percent tomorrow."
Indonesia have only beaten the Blue Samurai four times in their history and the Asian giants have dominated in recent decades, beating Indonesia 3-1 at the Asian Cup in January.
But Indonesia hope a new strategy of plucking Dutch-born players for its national team will pay dividends -- with recent squads including as many as 10 -- after it recently sparked an uptick in their performances.
"The Indonesian national team is very different from before," said Moriyasu.
A.Taylor--AT