- The United States team received a bucket of cold water in their match against their similar team from Japan in which, despite dominating the ball most of the time, they could not generate clear chances and ended up paying for the lack of defensive firmness they showed
The United States team revealed its most vulnerable side and generated many doubts with its performance in the match against its counterpart from Japan, in which it ended up losing 2-0, this being its penultimate test and friendly preparation for the Qatar 2022 World Cup. The meeting was held in Dusseldorf, Germany.
Coach Gregg Berhater put the best he had on the pitch in one of the last attempts to land his starting line-up for the World Cup. Despite the fact that ‘Team USA’ started the match better, it was diluted and finally they did not achieve a single shot on goal, something that generates many doubts and concerns thinking about the World Cup event.
Japan’s first goal came in the 24th minute of the match through Frankfurt striker Daichi Kamada. From then on, the American team took possession of the ball but failed to generate good scoring chances thanks to the Japanese defense.
For the second half, things did not change much and despite the fact that the United States dominated the ball more, it was Japan that generated the greatest danger in attack, making up to 16 shots, of which eight went to the goal guarded by Matt Turner.
The perseverance of the Asians paid off again in the 88th minute when Kaoru Mitoma, who had entered the 66th minute, managed to score the second goal for her team, which in turn ended the Americans’ chances of being able to continue drawing.
The Japanese team, which was mostly made up of players who are active in European football, was led by the young promise Take Kubo, former Real Madrid, who was in charge of pulling the strings of the match and guiding his team to victory despite not score any of the goals.
Now, the team led by Gregg Berhater will travel to Murcia, Spain, where next Tuesday they will face Saudi Arabia, in their last match prior to the Qatar 2022 World Cup. Precisely in the World Cup, the ‘Team USA’ is located in the Group B with England, Iran and Wales.