🏏 Tue, 14 Apr 2026 19:00 PDT
USA Women
vs
Japan Women
Positions estimated (no formation data from the API)
Substitutes
Substitutes
Match Preview
- Japan turn to Akane Okuma in goal for the second match of their tour of the United States. The INAC Kobe Leonessa keeper earned her call-up on the back of consistent WE League form, and she starts ahead of two overseas-based rivals: Manchester City's Ayaka Yamashita and Granada CF's Chika Hirao, both on the bench.
- Japan's centre-back pairing mixes eras. Saki Kumagai, 35, won the 2011 World Cup, lifted back-to-back UEFA Women's Champions League titles at Lyon and has played for Frankfurt, Bayern Munich and AS Roma. Alongside her, 27-year-old Moeka Minami won consecutive Serie A Femminile titles with Roma before joining Brighton permanently in 2025. Both came through Urawa Reds Ladies.
- The United States midfield is strikingly young. Claire Hutton, 20, is a left-footed holding midfielder who became the youngest captain in USWNT history and made the 2025 NWSL Best XI. Olivia Moultrie, also 20, signed a professional NWSL contract at 15 and holds the league's record for goals scored as a teenager, while 18-year-old Lyon midfielder Lily Yohannes completes the trio.
- Every member of Japan's midfield four earns a living in Europe. Holding midfielder Fuka Nagano has scored at Anfield for Liverpool; Honoka Hayashi struck the winner that ended Chelsea's unbeaten run while at Everton. Maika Hamano, who scored the decisive goal in the 2026 Asian Cup final, operates behind the strikers, with Frankfurt's Remina Chiba — a scorer of a four-minute hat-trick off the bench — on the right.
- The hosts have home advantage, but Japan have NWSL familiarity of their own. Starters Mina Tanaka, 31, and Miyabi Moriya, 29, both play for the Utah Royals, while the bench holds 21-year-old Mashin Matsukubo, named NWSL Midfielder of the Year after 11 goals in all 26 league games in North Carolina, and Yuzuki Yamamoto, who joined expansion side Denver Summit FC in 2026.
- The American bench is extraordinary. Sophia Wilson and Trinity Rodman, two thirds of the 'Triple Espresso' front line that won Olympic gold in Paris, captain Lindsey Horan, 2019 World Cup final match-winner Rose Lavelle and Naomi Girma — signed by Chelsea for a world-record fee in women's football — are all being held back. Whatever happens early, the second-half substitutions could reshape the game.
- The goalkeeping contrast is worth watching. Phallon Tullis-Joyce, the 185cm Manchester United number one, commands crosses, covers her area and is comfortable with the ball at her feet. Japan counter with the least experienced of their three keepers, Akane Okuma, facing one of the most dangerous attacking units in the world.
- Risa Shimizu has a demanding assignment at right-back. The converted forward, who moved from Manchester City to Liverpool on loan in 2025, relies on pace and crossing quality, but she must deal with Emma Sears — the top American scorer of 2025 with 10 goals and a hat-trick against New Zealand — and Ally Sentnor, the 2024 US Soccer Young Female Player of the Year.
- Japan keep serious firepower in reserve. Hinata Miyazawa, the Golden Boot winner at the 2023 World Cup, 22-year-old Momoko Tanikawa, who scored in three consecutive Bundesliga games for Bayern Munich, Manchester City duo Yui Hasegawa and Aoba Fujino, and Riko Ueki, the inaugural WSL Young Hammer of the Year at West Ham, are all available from the bench.