I KYOGO TO PLACES THAT YOU CAN’T
Furuhashi says movement is too good for SPFL rivals as he prepares to face fellow Celt Tom in World Cup showdown
KYOGO FURUHASHI reckons his crash course in Scottish football can help him teach Tom Rogic and his Australian pals a few lessons when they square up in Saitama this morning.
The Hoops pair will face off as Japan host the Socceroos in a World Cup qualifier with the nations facing entirely different challenges.
Rogic’s Australia are flying all the way to Qatar with 11 wins on the bounce. But Kyogo’s country are struggling with just three points from three games on the back of disastrous defeats to Oman and Saudi Arabia, heaping a ton of pressure on boss Hajime Moriyasu.
The gaffer can’t seem to do right for doing wrong at the moment and he took flak in his homeland for keeping Furuhashi on the bench against the Saudis and only chucking him on with less than half an hour to go.
Japan haven’t missed a World Cup since USA 94 and Moriyasu could get his books if today doesn’t go to plan. Kyogo is desperate for the chance to get the qualification campaign back on track – and he reckons he’s well prepared for the rugged Aussie backline.
The 26-year-old – who has notched eight goals in just 13 games since his £4.5m move from Yokohama Marinos – believes the Socceroos defence is not so different to Scottish backlines.
And he’s already worked out how to get the better of the SPFL. Kyogo reckons it takes brains rather than brawn to get one over the big boys at the back and he’s hoping to put his Premiership gameplan to good use today.
When it was put to him in Japan the Aussie lads are big lumps, he said: “That is a feature of Scottish football, so I use my movement to outsmart the opponent.
“I hate it if I can’t continue a run and there are some players who are good at lowering the opponent’s line and receiving it in space. So if I can do that movement as well against Australia.
“What you can do is run in the offence and defence, and in attacks you can create space by continuing to move aiming for space and get closer to the goal. That going from the front to the pressure will give the team a good chance.”
Rogic picked up his 50th cap in the 3-1 win against Oman last week and is in top form for club and country.
The playmaker is a man of few words these days but former Dundee United and Ross County defender Harry Souttar still keeps tabs on the Scottish game and knows he could have his hands full against Kyogo. The 22-year-old Stoke City centreback – the brother of Hearts’ John – said: “I do watch the Scottish league as much as I can and keep up with results. Kyogo has had a good start.
“He’s a different type of striker to someone I’d normally face in the Championship but we know he’s a good player – they’ve got good players all over the park and so will we.
“Hopefully it’ll make a great spectacle. We’ve got 11 wins and obviously it’s a record but we want to go for 12.”
There’s also a link between the managers, with Socceroos boss
Graeme Arnold a former teammate of Moriysau at Sanfrecce Hiroshima in the J League.
The Aussie boss has sympathy for his old colleague, but not too much. Arnold said: “It just shows you how fickle coaching is. He’s a fantastic guy. Moriyasu’s done a great job with Japan but a couple of losses and that’s what the situation of coaching can be.
“It’s exactly the same for me. That’s why I’m just enjoying one game at a time.
“There are a lot of people that underestimate the quality of the Asian sides. You cannot take any opposition lightly at all.”