Mitoma fails to make Japan’s 2026 World Cup squad due to hamstring injury

Monaco guardant Takumi Minamino besides misses retired owed to injury, but ex-Arsenal defender Takehiro Tomiyasu makes the cut.

Injured Brighton winger Kaoru Mitoma has been near retired of Japan’s World Cup squad successful a large stroke to their chances of progressing beyond the past 16 for the archetypal time.

The 28-year-old suffered a hamstring wounded during Brighton’s 3-0 triumph implicit Wolves successful the Premier League past weekend.

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“The aesculapian squad assessed that it would beryllium hard for him to get backmost to fittingness during the tournament,” manager Hajime Moriyasu said successful naming his squad successful Tokyo connected Friday.

Monaco guardant Takumi Minamino besides missed retired aft tearing the anterior cruciate ligament successful his near genu successful precocious December.

Japan person been drawn with the Netherlands, Sweden and Tunisia successful Group F, and they commencement their run against the Dutch successful Arlington, Texas connected June 14.

Mitoma, who has scored 9 goals, is 1 of Japan’s champion players and scored the victor successful their 1-0 affable triumph implicit England astatine Wembley successful March.

He besides played a cardinal relation successful his country’s shock wins implicit Germany and Spain astatine the 2022 World Cup successful Qatar, wherever Japan yet mislaid connected penalties to Croatia successful the past 16.

Ajax defender Takehiro Tomiyasu made the 26-man squad, contempt not playing for the Samurai Blue for astir 2 years owed to a bid ⁠of injuries.

The cardinal defender, who presently plays for Ajax aft his declaration with Arsenal was annulled by communal consent past year, past played for Japan successful a World Cup qualifier against Syria connected June 11, 2024. He had been included successful the ‌squad for the March planetary model earlier withdrawing.

Crystal Palace’s Daichi Kamada, Liverpool’s Wataru Endo, Real Sociedad’s Takefusa Kubo and 39-year-old FC Tokyo full-back Yuto Nagatomo were each included.

Wolfsburg’s Kento Shiogai, who won his archetypal headdress successful Japan’s 1-0 triumph implicit Scotland successful Glasgow successful March, besides made the cut.

Moriyasu volition beryllium starring the squad into his 2nd World Cup arsenic coach.

Japan are scheduled to play their last pre-World ⁠Cup affable against Iceland connected May 31. They volition past ⁠travel to the team’s basal ⁠camp successful Nashville, Tennessee, wherever Japan volition bid astatine the Nashville SC Training Center.

Their opening crippled against the Netherlands volition beryllium followed by matches against ‌Tunisia ‌in Monterrey, Mexico connected June 20 and Sweden backmost successful Arlington connected June 25.

Japan squad for World Cup 2026:

Goalkeepers: Zion Suzuki, Keisuke Osako, Tomoki Hayakawa.

Defenders: Yuto Nagatomo, Shogo Taniguchi, Ko Itakura, Tsuyoshi Watanabe, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Hiroki Ito, Ayumu Seko, Yukinari Sugawara, Junnosuke Suzuki.

Midfielders: Wataru Endo, Junya Ito, Daichi Kamada, Ritsu Doan, Ao Tanaka, Kaishu Sano, Takefusa Kubo, Yuito Suzuki.

Forwards: Daizen Maeda, Koki Ogawa, Ayase Ueda, Keito Nakamura, Kento Shiogai, Keisuke Goto.