JAPAN NATIONAL TEAM · MATSU’S NOTEBOOK
Brazil and Paraguay in Singapore. A new striker, some familiar faces back, and a proper test of what this Japan side is becoming. Fairly good time to start a national-team notebook.
4 NOVEMBER · THE SELECTION
Moriyasu has named 28 players for the Singapore trip. Shio Fukuda is the only first call-up. The other big story is the return of Takumi Minamino and Koki Machida after long spells out.
Missing this time: Ueda, Kaoru Mitoma and Takehiro Tomiyasu are out through injury. Nikkan Sports · 4 November ↗
The Karlsruhe striker joins a squad missing the injured Ayase Ueda. Id watch how he connects with the attack, rather than immediately asking him to be the finished article. Being introduced to Brazil is quite enough for one week.
Meet Fukuda →
Minamino and Machida return, alongside Sugawara and Sakamoto. For me, the interesting bit is how they fit around the players who used the last camp to make their own case.
Selection reporting · TV Asahi ↗
Hayakawa, Nakano, Soma and Ogawa are the domestic contingent. Nakano’s ability to play different roles is particularly useful when Moriyasu wants to change the shape without emptying the bench.
The full 28 →NEXT UP · SINGAPORE
19:15 JST / 10:15 UK
Singapore National Stadium · 18:15 Singapore
A serious test of the space Japan leave when they attack.
22:10 JST / 13:10 UK
Singapore National Stadium · 21:10 Singapore
A second look at the combinations that work, and the ones that need work.
Kick-offs from the JFA squad schedule. Singapore is one hour behind Japan and eight hours ahead of the UK in November.
THE LAST FOUR · JAPAN’S SCORE FIRST
THE FOOTBALL
The shape is a starting point. What matters is who gives the width, who gets between the lines, and who is still there when Japan lose it.
Japan used a back three in the first three games of the last camp, then started with four against New Zealand. Moriyasu said the switch was about expanding the team’s options. Thats useful. International football doesnt give you months to fix Plan A.
In the latest starting shape, Kubo played behind Ueda with Doan and Maeda either side. Id watch the distances between that front four. The striker needs support close enough to combine, with someone still stretching the pitch.
Against New Zealand, the full-backs joined attacks and Japan created the opener from the right. They also conceded after losing the ball. For me, the Singapore test is whether the players behind the attack can stop the first counter. Sano cant be everywhere, much as everyone might like him to be.
The pitch shows the last starting XI, not a predicted team for November. Ueda is absent from this squad. Tactical judgments here are my read of the reported matches.
GET TO KNOW THE PLAYERS
Different jobs, different stories. Open a profile for the background and what id watch next.
福田 師王
The 22-year-old went from Kamimura Gakuen straight to Germany. After a loan at Karlsruhe, the move became permanent. Moriyasu has picked him for his improving quality at a high tempo.
For me, watch what he does before the shot. Can he occupy a centre-back, stay involved and give the creative players someone to find? Thats a much better test than demanding a debut goal against Brazil.
南野 拓実
Back in the squad after a long injury absence. Monaco describe him as a versatile, combative attacking midfielder. His route has taken him from Cerezo through Salzburg and Liverpool to the Principality.
Id like to see how quickly he reconnects with the players around him. The useful version of Minamino keeps the attack moving and gets into scoring positions. He doesnt need to win a dribbling competition to matter.
中野 就斗
Hiroshima’s multi-position defender started at right-back against New Zealand. His delivery helped create the opener. This call-up follows his first senior international camp in September and October.
Hes interesting because he can help change the shape without needing a substitution. Id watch when he joins the attack and when he stays behind it. The timing is the job.
久保 建英
A left-footed creator who can play from the right or inside. His route through FC Tokyo and Yokohama F. Marinos led to Spain. Against New Zealand, Japan used him centrally behind the striker.
For me, the question is how often Japan can find him beyond the first press. If every touch is a rescue mission near halfway, the structure is making his life unnecessarily difficult.
佐野 海舟
A midfielder with a strong instinct for interceptions and second balls, developed at Machida and Kashima before Mainz. He started alongside Kamada in Japan’s latest game.
Recovering the ball is only half the appeal. Watch the next pass. If Japan can turn his recoveries into clean forward attacks, the talented players get to do the fun stuff more often.
小川 航基
JFA’s profile highlights his hold-up play, heading and finishing with either foot. Now listed at Machida Zelvia in the November squad, he returns while Ayase Ueda is absent.
Id watch whether the ball sticks when Japan have to go longer. A striker who lets the team get up the pitch can be useful long before his name appears on the scoresheet.
堂安 律
The Gamba graduate now plays at Frankfurt. He captained Japan against New Zealand and scored the winner by arriving on the opposite side of a Nakamura cutback.
Its an easy detail to miss while everyone watches the dribbler. Id keep an eye on his starting position when the attack goes down the left. Thats where a winger can quietly become a second striker.
町田 浩樹
The Kashima academy graduate is back after a long injury absence. At 190cm, he adds another sizeable defensive option to the group. The current squad lists him at Hoffenheim.
Id judge the return on his defending and his connection with the players either side, rather than treating selection as proof that every bit of sharpness is already back. Brazil will supply a fairly thorough examination.
NOVEMBER 2026 · ANNOUNCED SQUAD
28 of 28 players
Kashima Antlers
Sint-Truiden
Aston Villa
Borussia Mönchengladbach
Feyenoord
Hoffenheim
Bayern Munich
Le Havre
Sanfrecce Hiroshima
Cagliari
FC Copenhagen
Genk
Monaco
Crystal Palace
Coventry City
Machida Zelvia
Machida Zelvia
Ipswich Town
Eintracht Frankfurt
Leeds United
Lyon
Mainz
Real Sociedad
Freiburg
Southampton
PSV
Karlsruher SC
Freiburg
Squad and clubs as announced on 4 November. JFA groups midfielders and forwards together. Official squad ↗
KEEP FOLLOWING THE PLAYERS
The club football tells you plenty about who is ready and who is finding their feet.
The team banner carries JFA’s photo credit. The other supplied photos and club call-up graphics were provided by Matsu, with embedded credits retained. Kaishu Sano’s additional portrait is by RuinDig/Yuki Uchida, via Wikimedia Commons, under CC BY 4.0. It shows the January 2024 Thailand friendly and has been resized and converted to WebP.
First edition, 4 November 2026. Squad and clubs checked against JFA and the J.League’s announcement. Fixtures use the JFA’s local Singapore kick-offs, converted to JST and UK time. Player background links sit inside the profiles.
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