Japan vs Cameroon 09/10/20

09 October 2020

Stadion Galgenwaard hosts Japan versus Cameroon for an international friendly that will see the African side looking to extend an unbeaten run to seven (W2, D4).

It will be Japan’s first match this calendar year, with none of their last nine ending level (W7, L2). The ‘clean-sheet’ theme has been notably significant for the ‘Samurai Blue’ during that nine-game sequence, as seven of the results (wins/losses) in that period have seen the losing side fail to get on the scoresheet. In turn, all four of their historical H2H meetings have seen at least one team draw a blank, with Japan running out winners on three of those occasions (W3, D1). Conceding the opening goal, however, could well mean an end to Japan’s hopes of winning here, given Hajime Moriyasu’s men have lost all five of their last matches in which they allowed the opener.

As for Cameroon, they have avoided defeat in three of their outings this calendar year (W1, D2), all of which featured under 1.5 first-half goals and less than 2.5 in total. For ‘Les Lions Indomptables,’ goals have been at a premium over the past 16 months, as they drew a blank in five of nine games during that period, scoring precisely once per game in three of the other four. Toni Conceição has instead based his team’s success on a rock-solid defense that has racked up eight clean sheets in Cameroon’s last ten outings. Low scoring has been a theme for Cameroon on foreign soil lately, as each of their previous four away games contained under 2.5 goals, with three featuring a maximum of one (W2, D2).