Arsenal forward misses out on fourth World Cup after being cut from squad

Mana Iwabuchi was part of the Japan side that won the World Cup in 2011

Mana Iwabuchi spent the second half of the WSL season on loan at Tottenham but has missed out on Japan’s World Cup squad (Getty Images)

Japan’s Mana Iwabuchi will not have the chance to appear at a fourth straight Women’s World Cup after the veteran forward was a surprise omission from Futoshi Ikeda’s 23-player squad for the 2023 tournament announced on Tuesday.

Iwabuchi was part of the teams that won the World Cup in 2011 and finished runners-up four years later. She also played in the 2019 tournament when Japan exited in the last 16.

The 30-year-old struggled for form in the 2022-23 Women’s Super League campaign and played only five times for Arsenal before spending the second half of the season with rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

Captain Saki Kumagai, who scored the winning penalty in the shootout when Japan upset the United States 12 years ago, is the only player remaining from the 2011 squad. The 32-year-old defender joined AS Roma from Bayern Munich last week.

Ikeda also called up Manchester City midfielder Yui Hasegawa, Angel City forward Jun Endo, West Ham United duo Honoka Hayashi and Risa Shimizu, and Liverpool’s Fuka Nagano.

Australia and New Zealand will co-host the tournament from 20 July to 20 August. Japan begin their campaign in Group C against Zambia in Hamilton on 22 July before taking on Costa Rica and Spain in Dunedin and Wellington.

Japan earned qualification for the tournament by reaching the last four of the 2022 Women’s Asian Cup, when they were beaten on penalties by China, the eventual winners of the tournament, at the semi-final stage.

Ikeda has coached the side since 2021 after previously working with Japan’s Under-17 and Under-20 sides.

Reuters