Riko Ueki and Risa Shimizu both featured for Japan as they were narrowly beaten 2-1 by the USA in the semi-finals of the SheBelieves Cup on Saturday evening.
This was the beginning of the ninth edition of the SheBelieves Cup, an invitational friendly tournament, with both semi-finals being played in front of 50,644 fans at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, a record for a friendly match for the United States women on home soil.
Japan scored 30 seconds into the game. Kiko Seike dashed down the flank and evaded a defender with a shot that was out of the reach of goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher.
However, the home side responded well, with Jaedyn Shaw scoring from outside the area to level the game after just 20 minutes.
Lindsey Horan would fire in the winning goal with 13 minutes of normal time remaining. Sophia Smith was brought down in the penalty area, allowing captain Horan to convert from the spot and edge the USA into the final.
Ueki played for 70 minutes in the match before being replaced, Shimizu played the full game, while Honoka Hayashi was an unused substitute.
In the second semi-final, which followed the game involving Japan and the USA, Canada overcame Brazil 4-2 on penalties after it had finished 1-1 at the end of normal time, setting up a final against the hosts, a repeat of last month’s CONCACAF Gold Cup semi-final. Shelina Zadorsky was an unused substitute in the penalty victory.
Japan will face Brazil in the third-place match on Tuesday 9 April at 9pm BST, while Canada and the USA will kick off the final of the competition at 12am on Wednesday 10 April BST.
