NASHVILLE, Tennessee - Japan captain Ko Itakura appeared unconcerned Monday about who the Samurai Blue could face should they reach the World Cup knockout stage, with teammates Daizen Maeda and Kaishu Sano firmly focused on their final Group F match against Sweden.
Handed the captain's armband just three days before their opening match following the shock departure of Wataru Endo, Itakura was kept on the bench for the 2-2 draw with the Netherlands but had a commanding outing in their 4-0 hammering of Tunisia on Saturday.
"There's no easy game whoever we face. While I personally want to play the (traditionally) strong nations at the World Cup, any teams we end up facing would be strong and I want us to overcome them each time," said Itakura, who is happy with the state of his team.
"I'm captain but the mood inside the camp is so good that I almost don't need to do anything. I hope we keep going in such an atmosphere."
Speedster Maeda, who started in the opener against the Netherlands before remaining on the bench against Tunisia, agreed with his skipper after training at their base camp near Nashville, Tennessee.
"Japan's strength lies in even the players not on the pitch doing their best for the team. I think such teams are strong," he said. "That (mentality) becomes important the deeper we go in these tournaments and that's something we're doing unconsciously."
Ahead of their game against Sweden on Thursday, Maeda mentioned Celtic teammate Benjamin Nygren as a potential danger on top of the deadly front line of Viktor Gyokeres and Alexander Isak.
"He's really good technically and is also blessed with scoring ability," Maeda said. "We have to be careful not just with their two forwards but also with him," he said.
After capping an impressive overall performance with an assist against Tunisia, battling midfielder Sano hopes to continue providing protection for the team's backline against Sweden.
"They have many quality players up front and while it'll be important for me to keep hold of them as an individual, we want to play with the right sense of distance in the team both in attack and defense," he said.
"Whoever gets picked to play, I feel we as a team have things sorted out. We're beginning to show our character too and I want to help bring the best out of my teammates even more."
