As reported by the Japanese press, the national team may not have the services of two key players Takefusa Kubo and Ritsu Doan in the November matches of the third qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup in Asia, including a trip to My Dinh Stadium to face the Vietnamese team.
Takefusa Kubo has yet to recover from the knee injury he suffered in Real Mallorca's loss to Real Madrid on September 23. While Ritsu Doan was also injured for PSV Eindhoven and missed a series of matches in October of the Japanese team.
Not only that, coach Hajime Moriyasu's team will likely also lose key striker Yuya Osako. The 31-year-old striker had to leave the field in the 60th minute of Japan's recent win over Australia. Vissel Kobe's striker is reported to have suffered an injury to his right foot and is at risk of not being able to travel to Vietnam and Oman with his teammates in November.
When asked about Osako's injury, coach Atsuhiro Miura of Vissel Kobe said: "The injured players are recovering well in the past 2 weeks. However, I am quite worried about Osako's situation. Maybe he will be out for a while.
Losing Osako will be a big loss for the Japanese team. The 31-year-old striker played 7 matches and scored 9 goals in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers. Coach Moriyasu must definitely find a replacement for Osako.
In the final qualifying round of the 2022 World Cup in Asia, Japan is currently ranked 4th in Group B with 6 points after 4 matches, equal to Oman but behind the goal difference. In November, the "Samurai Blues" will visit the Vietnam national team and Oman national team on November 11 and 16.
