Group 6 of this year’s World Cup comes to a close with a showdown!

Japan and Sweden face off early Friday morning (June 26, 2:00 a.m.) at AT&T; Stadium in Dallas for the third and final matchday, with both teams motivated to advance to the Round of 32!

Japan currently sits in second place with 4 points, having drawn 2-2 with the Netherlands in its opener, and then impressed against a struggling Tunisia, celebrating an impressive 4-0 victory and securing their spot in the next round! In fact, they are even hoping to finish first if they win tonight, as they are tied with the Netherlands and both teams have the same goal difference.

For the “Blue Samurai,” Kubo remains sidelined, while Matsuno is suffering from a cold.

Japan’s roster:

Goalkeepers: Shion Suzuki (Parma), Keisuke Osako (Hiroshima), Tomoki Hayakawa (Kashima Antlers)

Defenders: Yukinari Sugawara (Werder Bremen), Yunosuke Suzuki (Copenhagen), Yuto Nagatomo (Tokyo), Ko Itakura (Ajax), Sogo Taniguchi (Sint-Truiden), Takehiro Tomiyasu (Ajax), Tsuyoshi Watanabe (Feyenoord), Hiroki Ito (Bayern Munich)

Midfielders: Ayumu Sekou (Le Havre), Ao Tanaka (Leeds United), Wataru Edo (Stuttgart), Kaishu Sano (Mainz), Daichi Kamanda (Crystal Palace)

Forwards: Ayase Ueda (Cercle Brugge), Yuito Suzuki (Freiburg), Yunua (Ito Genk), Keisuke Goto (Sint-Truiden), Keito Nakamura (Rems), Kento Shiokai (Wolfsburg), Koki Ogawa (Nijmegen), Daizen Maeda (Celtic), Ritsu Doan (Eintracht Frankfurt), Takefusa Kubo (Real Sociedad),

On the other hand, Sweden is one point behind and needs at least a draw tonight to improve its chances of advancing, even if it finishes in third place. In their opening match, they showed many positive signs, especially on offense, securing a resounding 5-1 victory over Tunisia, but then exposed all of its weaknesses, losing by the same score to the Netherlands.

Sweden’s roster:

Goalkeepers: Viktor Johansson (Stoke), Jakob Vindel Zetterström (Derby County), Christopher Nordfeldt (AIK Stockholm)

Defenders: Viktor Lindelöf (Aston Villa), Gabriel Gudmundsson (Leeds United), Gustaf Lagerbielke (Braga), Elliot Straud (Mjällby), Eric Smith San (Pauli), Isaac Hien (Atalanta), Karl Starfelt (Celta), Daniel Svensson (Dortmund), Hermann Johansson (Dallas), Hjálmar Ekdal (Groningen)

Midfielders: Yassin Ayari (Brighton), Jesper Karlström (Udinese), Lukas Bergwall (Tottenham), Mattias Svanberg (Wolfsburg), Benjamin Nigrén (Celtic), Besfort Zéneli Union (Saint-Gilloise)

Forwards: Alexander Isak (Liverpool), Alexander Bernhardsson (Holstein Kiel), Anthony Elanga (Newcastle), Viktor Gokeres (Arsenal), Gustav Nilsson (Club Brugge), Ken Sema (Paphos), Taha Ali (Malmö)

Probable starting lineups:

Japan (Moriyasu): Suzuki – Doan, Tomiyasu, Itakura, Ito, Nakamura – Sano, Tanaka – Ito, Kamanda, Ueda

Sweden (Potter): Nordfeldt – Lagerbielke, Hien, Lindelof – Bernardsson, Nygren, Kallström, Ajari, Gudmundsson – Gökers, Isak

Referee: Ivan Barton (El Salvador)

*photo source: AP