Japan Olympic team manager Makoto Teguramori believes his side is capable of winning gold at this summer's Rio Games, but there are too many factors clouding the water to predict anything for certain.
Teguramori named his 18-man squad for the Aug. 3-20 Olympic soccer tournament last Friday, largely keeping faith with the players who booked Japan's place by winning the Asian Under-23 Championship in Qatar in January. Japan has been drawn with Sweden, Nigeria and Colombia in an extremely competitive Group B, but Teguramori believes in his players' abilities.
"Against South Africa, at first we had to be patient, deal with the strength of our opponent and probe for weaknesses and gaps in their defense," the manager said of his team's 4-1 friendly win in Nagano last Wednesday. "Our reading of the game was what got us the win. I think that is Japan's style, to control the game, read what the opponent is thinking and turn small gaps into big ones."
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