In Rifu, beneath the lights of Miyagi Stadium, Uruguay’s Asian tour began with a late reversal rather than a smooth opening for Diego Forlán. Japan struck twice in stoppage time to claim a 3-1 friendly victory, spoiling the former Villarreal and Atlético de Madrid forward’s first match as interim coach of the senior side.
Japan find their finish after an even contest
Uruguay began with greater urgency and created the earlier openings. Eight minutes in, Federico Viñas tested Tomoki Hayakawa with a long-range effort, but the Japan goalkeeper dealt with the shot down the middle after several attacks had failed to produce a clear chance.
The home side responded in the 11th minute. Keito Nakamura set up Kuryu Matsuki, whose strike from outside the box found the left corner to give Japan the lead.
- Darwin Núñez then had an effort towards the left side of goal stopped by Hayakawa as Uruguay looked for an immediate answer.
- Maxi Araújo restored parity three minutes before half-time, sending a difficult effort through the centre of the goal for 1-1.
- Japan applied much of the second-half pressure but initially struggled to break through Uruguay’s defensive resistance.
- Uruguay largely defended deeper after the interval, with their own attempts mainly coming from distance.
The decisive moments arrived after the 90th minute. Substitute Kento Shiogai put Japan back ahead in the second minute of added time with a shot from outside the area. Four minutes later, Ayase Ueda completed the result, converting after good work from Junya Ito.
Forlán’s first selection and the teams in Rifu
Forlán, who is also Uruguay’s under-20 coach, named Ronald Araújo in his starting defence. The Barcelona player, currently on loan at Liverpool, began alongside Guillermo Varela, Juan Manuel Sanabria and Nahitan Nández.
Japan
- Tomoki Hayakawa
- Ko Itakura, replaced by Junnosuke Suzuki in the 66th minute; Ayumu Seko; Hiroki Ito
- Keito Nakamura, replaced by Kento Shiogai in the 83rd minute; Kaishu Sano; Kodai Sano, replaced by Daichi Kamada at half-time; Kuryu Matsuki, replaced by Junya Ito in the 64th minute
- Yuito Suzuki; Ritsu Doan, replaced by Takefusa Kubo in the 64th minute; Daizen Maeda, replaced by Ayase Ueda in the 63rd minute
- Coach: Hajime Moriyasu
Uruguay
- Santiago Mele
- Guillermo Varela; Juan Manuel Sanabria, replaced by Joaquín Piquerez in the 79th minute; Ronald Araújo, replaced by José María Giménez in the 68th minute; Nahitan Nández, replaced by Rodrigo Aguirre in the 77th minute
- Maxi Araújo, replaced by Facundo Pellistri in the 84th minute; Rodrigo Bentancur, replaced by Facundo Bernal in the 79th minute; Lucas Torreira; Brian Rodríguez, replaced by Rodrigo Zalazar in the 68th minute and then Juan Rodríguez in the 77th minute
- Federico Viñas, replaced by Giorgian de Arrascaeta in the 68th minute; Darwin Núñez
- Coach: Diego Forlán
Late goals shape the tour’s opening night
| Minute | Scorer | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 11 | Kuryu Matsuki | Japan 1-0 Uruguay |
| 42 | Maxi Araújo | Japan 1-1 Uruguay |
| 90+2 | Kento Shiogai | Japan 2-1 Uruguay |
| 90+6 | Ayase Ueda | Japan 3-1 Uruguay |
The match was the 10th meeting between the two national teams and took place at Miyagi Stadium, a venue in Rifu that holds nearly 50,000 spectators. Australian referee Alex King booked Japan defenders Hiroki Ito and Ayumu Seko, while Rodrigo Bentancur and substitute José María Giménez were cautioned for Uruguay.
Uruguay now move on from Japan to Seoul, where they face South Korea at the World Cup Stadium on Monday the 28th. Their Asian itinerary concludes against India at Kolkata’s VYBK on Tuesday, 6 October.
