1 Mana Iwabuchi
Dubbed the Nadeshiko’s “brightest flower” the 22-year-old Bayern Munich creator has been used primarily as an impact substitute during Canada 2015. She stepped off the bench to devastating effect in the quarter-final against Australia, scoring Japan’s 87th-minute winner. Norio Sasaki, the coach, must now be strongly tempted to start Iwabuchi, originally from Tokyo, against England. “She is a killer player,” he said. “She has very good ability to create opportunities in front of goal. When she was preparing to come on against the tired Australian players I told her she was going to decide it.”
2 Shinobu Ohno
The 31-year-old, 5ft 1 inch forward is well known to the Lionesses after enjoying a stint with Arsenal last year. Now back home with INAC Kobe she commands respect among Mark Sampson’s squad. “Shinobu’s a very good player,” says England’s Arsenal goalkeeper Siobhan Chamberlain. “We’ll have to be aware of the threat she poses.” Yukari Kinga, likely to start on the bench against England in Edmonton, is also a familiar face after starring alongside Ohno at Arsenal in 2014 before departing for Kobe with her compatriot.
3 Nahomi Kawasumi
Along with the captain and key midfielder Aya Miyama, Kawasumi, Japan’s menacing forward, is arguably one of her country’s two best-known players. “We have got to be careful against England,” cautions a 29-year-old currently playing her club football at Seattle in the United States. “They are fast and they are very good at playing long balls so we will be taking that into consideration.”
4 Norio Sasaki
Japan’s 57-year-old coach has been a resounding success since his appointment in 2007. Renowned as one of the top coaches in the women’s game, he has not only led the Nadeshiko to World Cup victory in 2011 but also the 2014 Asian Cup and a silver medal in the London 2012 Olympics. Big on short passing, technical excellence and selfless teamwork, he promises to provide Mark Sampson with his toughest tactical test of 2015.
