Int'l Friendly: Japan - Ivory Coast

Posted Thursday, June 03, 2010 by Goal.com

Two giants in their respective continents lock horns.....

Kick-Off: Friday, June 4, 19:00 CET.
Stade Tourbillon, Sion, Switzerland.

Proving Themselves

Japan are one of the superpowers in Asian football but they have been struggling in recent times. Takeshi Okada's side have lost their last three international games, losing to Serbia in April, then South Korea and England last week.

In fact, the defeat to the Koreans was Japan's second defeat to them in four months and was also their third loss in four home matches. However, Japan stepped up their game against England at the weekend and even took the lead in the early stages in Graz, only to agonisingly concede two own goals to go down 2-1 in the friendly international at the UPZ Arena.

Japan have been pitted against the Netherlands, Denmark and Cameroon in Group E, and playing Ivory Coast would be a good way for the Asian side to test themselves against an African side.

Flying The African Flag

Ivory Coast may consider themselves unlucky to have drawn 2-2 with Paraguay in an international friendly on Sunday and indeed they looked impressive. However, the 89th minute goal conceded reinforced the belief that the Elephants' weakness is in defence.

Sven-Goran Eriksson was only recently appointed the coach of the Ivorians and the match against Paraguay was his first official game in charge of the African nation. However, the Swede should certainly have identified the problems that his side have.

Some observers suggest that Ivory Coast are the best bet for an African nation going far in the World Cup this summer and indeed on paper the Ivorians look very strong. The likes of Didier Drogba, Salomon Kalou, Yaya Toure and Kolo Toure are big-name players in club football and there will be pressure on them to perform for their nation as well as they perform for their respective clubs.

FORM GUIDE

Japan

May 30: Japan 1-2 England (Friendly)

May 24: Japan 0-2 Korea Republic (Friendly)

April 7: Japan 0-3 Serbia (Friendly)

March 3: Japan 2-0 Bahrain (Asian Cup qualifier)

February 14: Japan 1-3 Korea Republic (East Asian Football Championship)

Ivory Coast

May 30: Paraguay 2-2 Ivory Coast (Friendly)

March 3: Ivory Coast 0-2 Korea Republic (Friendly)

January 24: Ivory Coast 2-3 Algeria (African Nations Cup)

January 15: Ivory Coast 3-1 Ghana (African Nations Cup)

January 11: Ivory Coast 0-0 Burkina Faso (African Nations Cup)

TEAM NEWS

Japan

Japan coach Takeshi Okada is likely to use virtually the same starting line-up he used against England at the weekend, although former Celtic star Shunsuke Nakamura will start. The playmaker missed the match against England with an ankle injury but will play against the Ivorians as this is the final warm-up game for Japan.

Probable Line-up (4-5-1): Kawashima, Konno, Nakazawa, Tulio Tanaka, Nagatomo; Honda, Abe, Hasebe, Endo, Nakamura; Okazaki

Ivory Coast

Coach Sven-Goran Eriksson has already named his final 23-man squad for the World Cup finals and with not much time left between now and the start of the showpiece event, the former England coach would like to field his strongest side against Japan. With no reported injuries, all the big name players are likely to start, including Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou, both of whom are forwards and play for Premier League champions Chelsea.

Probable Line-up (4-4-2): Barry, Eboue, K. Toure, Boka, Tiene; Y. Toure, Zokora, Romaric, C. Tiote; Drogba, Kalou

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Keisuke Honda (Japan)

The CSKA Moscow midfielder was arguably the most dangerous outfield player for Japan against England on Sunday. His playmaking abilities and tenacity to take shots will be crucial for his side against the Ivorians, who have a brilliant attack-line themselves.

Didier Drogba (Ivory Coast)

The Chelsea striker has already established himself as one of the best strikers on the planet and he will be looking to warm up for the World Cup finals with an impressive performance. Japan's defensive unit has shown more cracks than they should have and the 32-year-old will be keen to exploit them on Friday.

PREDICTION

Ivory Coast have more established and well-known stars and should be the favourites to win this match. However, Japan showed on Sunday that they are not overawed by taking on highly rated teams and will prove to be tough competitors; but they won't be able to register a win.

Japan 0-2 Ivory Coast