Japan is headed to the FIFA U-20 World Cup final thanks in no small part to North Carolina Courage forward Manaka Matsukubo. The 20-year-old Courage star bagged a brace in Japan’s 2-0 semifinal win over the Netherlands, earning Manaka a second consecutive Player of the Match award and third overall honor of the tournament.
Manaka opened the scoring in the 55’, capping off a strong passing play from Japan with a confident finish into the roof of the net, before adding an 83’ dagger to down the Dutch. Now, Manaka and Japan have their sights set on the final where they will face Korea DPR in a rematch of the AFC U-20 Women’s Asian Cup in the final on Sunday.
Korea DPR beat the United States, 1-0, to advance to the final. Courage midfielder Riley Jackson played the full 90’ for the USYNT once again, continuing her strong run at the heart of the team’s midfield. Jackson has played all but 45’ minutes for the U.S. at the tournament and came up clutch in big moments, including scoring the clinching penalty in the shootout to cap off the team’s wild comeback win over Germany in the quarterfinals. Jackson and the U.S. will face the Netherlands in the third-place match Saturday.
“They have been great. It is good to see them doing well and having a chance to play for a medal. We look forward to having them back,” Courage Head Coach Sean Nahas said.
Schedule and streaming
Third-place match: United States vs the Netherlands
Saturday, September 21, 5 p.m. ET (Fox Soccer Plus | Telemundo)
Final: Japan vs Korea DPR
Sunday, September 22, 5 p.m. ET (FS2 | Telemundo | Universo)
Photo credit: FIFA via Getty Images