Members of the Japanese national team running (from left) Morita, Kubo, Itakura, and others (Photo by Kentaro Nishikai)
Photo By Sponichi
Japan representative DF Ko Itakura (27 = Borussia MG) updated his Instagram by the 6th. In the Asia Cup quarter-final match against Iran held on the 3rd, he conceded a painful penalty kick that led to the winning goal in stoppage time of the second half with the score 1-1, but he showed a strong determination to switch things up and move forward.
The Japanese national team (ranked 17th in the world) lost 1-2 to the Iranian national team (ranked 21st in the world) in a direct showdown between Asia’s 1st and 2nd place, the most anticipated match of the tournament. At the Asian Cup, they finished in the top eight for the first time in two tournaments.
Itakura first expressed his gratitude to the supporters by saying, “Thank you for your support of the Asian Cup,” and then expressed his determination with his short words, “We will face it. We will move forward.”
This post received many encouraging replies from fellow members of the Japanese national team. MF Hidemasa Morita (Sporting) responded, “I’ll do it.” In addition, captain MF Wataru Endo (Liverpool), MF Takumi Minamino (Monaco), DF Shogo Taniguchi (Al Rayan), and DF Yuse Sugawara (AZ) sent messages of encouragement using emojis. In addition to the members of the Japanese national team, they received a lot of encouragement from the soccer world, including goalkeeper Schmidt Daniel (Ghent), who was not invited to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Also, Borussia MG, the club to which they belong, updated their official Instagram on the same day. Just as Itakura celebrated his 27th birthday during the Asian Cup and was congratulated by the Japanese national team, Borussia MG Eleven also made a flower path to welcome Itakura who rejoined the team. On Instagram, he warmly welcomed Itakura by writing the word “welcome back” in Japanese.
In response to this post, Itakura seemed to be doing well, with comments such as, “Kou-kun’s smile is the best. It’s nice to have friends,” “I’m relieved to see Itakura looking healthy,” and “He’s loved by the team.” There were a number of comments expressing reassurance about the situation.
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2024-02-06 08:42:00
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