Japan¡¯s under-24 men¡¯s soccer team may be contending for Olympic gold on home soil next month, but their road to victory runs through Europe.
Head coach Hajime Moriyasu¡¯s 18-man squad for the Tokyo Games features a record nine players ¡ª including two of three overage selections ¡ª belonging to European clubs, representing a dramatic shift from a squad that sent just two overseas-based players to Rio de Janeiro in 2016.
For Moriyasu, who was put in charge of Japan¡¯s men¡¯s Olympic team in the fall of 2017 before also being appointed as the senior Samurai Blue¡¯s head coach a year later, Tuesday¡¯s announcement was the conclusion of a process that has included as many as 90 players.
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