Tomiyasu Out of Japan Squad for Scotland, England Matches

Takehiro Tomiyasu, a 27-year-old defender currently with Arsenal, has been ruled out of the Japan national team for friendly matches against Scotland and England due to a knee injury. Japan's head coach, Hajime Moriyasu, had called Tomiyasu up last week despite his lack of appearances for the national team in 2024.

Tomiyasu has only played six minutes in the 2024-25 season due to ongoing injury issues, which have also affected his time at Ajax Amsterdam, where he made just six competitive appearances. Japan is set to face Scotland at Hampden Park on Saturday and England at Wembley on March 31 as part of their preparations for the World Cup, where they will compete in Group F alongside the Netherlands and Tunisia, the playoff winner.