Japan vs El Salvador

Toyota Stadium is the venue as Japan and El Salvador go head-to-head in only their second-ever international meeting.

Recovering from a heartbreaking last-16 exit to Croatia at the 2022 World Cup in December has proved daunting for Japan, based on their underwhelming two-game winless start to the new calendar year (D1, L1). Following a 1-1 draw against Uruguay, the ‘Samurai Blue’ spurned an early lead in a 2-1 loss to Colombia last time out, conceding within the opening 35 minutes of play on both occasions. Those two results form part of Japan’s ominously-looking four-game run without a victory on home turf (D2, L2), during which they failed to score more than once per match. However, Hajime Moriyasu’s men boast a substantial edge on a visiting El Salvador side they overcame 2-0 in their only previous friendly encounter in 2019.

On the other hand, El Salvador come into proceedings amid a rough patch, having lost their last four internationals by an aggregate score of 7-1, including a brace of 1-0 defeats to the United States and Honduras to kick things off in 2023. Moreover, the visitors have failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their last 13 outings since a 2-0 triumph at Honduras in January 2022, highlighting a porous backline as the team’s weakest link. Defensive frailties are not El Salvador’s only concern ahead of this trip, considering they’ve drawn a blank on four of their last five international travels (D1, L4, with their most three yielding identical 1-0 losses. Going back to September 2021, ‘La Selecta’ have suffered eight defeats in 11 away matches (W1, D2), hence the pessimism in the traveling camp.