The Greenlander aiming to turn Japan’s women’s team back into winners

Flashback to July 2011 and the jubilant celebrations by Japan’s World Cup heroes as they hoist the trophy high into the Frankfurt night sky and you could easily have thought the Japanese women’s game was going to enjoy a period of sustained prosperity. However, despite history being made that summer evening, success at major tournaments has proved impossible for the Japan FA.

Now, though, there is hope of a new dawn. Enter Nils Nielsen, the former Manchester City women’s director of football and Denmark women’s coach, who has been charged with guiding the Nadeshiko back to the heights of 2011. The appointment serves as a landmark moment with the Greenlander becoming Japan’s first foreign manager.

“It was some time after the summer when I first heard that the JFA might be open to hiring a foreign head coach,” says the 53-year-old. “At Manchester City we were done with the transfer market a little early and everything was ready to be pushed through so there was no need for me to stick around. I didn’t start looking for my next step until after the summer and I asked a Japanese agent if the rumours about the Japan position were true and it turns out they were.

“When I received the offer there was no doubt in my mind that this is what I wanted to do. During my time with Denmark we played Japan a lot in the Algarve Cup. That’s where I first met [the 2011 World Cup winning manager] Norio Sasaki. In women’s football he is a legend and the chance to work alongside an icon like that doesn’t come around every day.”

Nielsen arrives with a respectable record at international tournaments, with the biggest success making the final with Denmark at the 2017 European Championship.

“We are not going to beat around the bush with the targets we set,” he says. “We aim to win a major tournament and we will do everything we can to achieve that.”

Since the 2011 triumph Japan’s best showing in a World Cup or Olympics came in 2021, when they reached the semi-finals of their home Games. Given the depth of high-quality technical players available that is a serious underperformance.

Nielsen has been quick to identify the causes of the shortcomings. “If football was played only in the space between the two penalty areas Japan would possibly be the most successful team in football history,” he says. “But that’s not the case and there are some elements that must be added.

“Specifically, it is those killer instincts that are often lacking, particularly in the first and final thirds. The Japanese are so polite and it’s just not natural for them to have lots of duels in a game and be very aggressive. This is what needs to be taught and those elements are needed for us to win those very tight games.”

Some of these traits extend beyond the pitch and apply to Japanese culture in general, where group prosperity is prioritised over that of the individual. But Nielsen insists his is not an attempt to discard one set of cultural values in favour of another.

“It’s about the way we mentally approach games and do it in a safe way so they don’t feel they have to change themselves,” he says. “It is their game mentality that changes, not who they are. So we will tweak a few little things in the way we play and encourage them to not be afraid of making mistakes because mistakes help us improve.”

January brings a series of youth tournaments in most major sports in Japan and Nielsen watched the women’s high school finals and the under-18 club championship as he aims to better understand the state of the grassroots game. The competitions seem to have left a lasting impression.

“What is incredible is that there are so many young talents in Japan you can have two high-quality youth tournaments running at the same time. I was watching both finals and thinking ‘Wow’. It’s no wonder Japan has made it to the last three Under-20 Women’s World Cup finals.

“They have fantastic skill, a low centre of gravity and are very quick – a great combination. On top of that they have great vision and know how to break the lines. Even from a young age they have a very distinguished style of play.”

Despite his surprise, Nielsen is well acquainted with the qualities commonly shared by many Japanese players. During his time at Manchester City he had a hand in deals for four of the five Nadeshiko members currently on their books.

“It was a coincidence. If you’re after a player with good passing ability and run a search on a scouting database I guarantee you that seven out of 10 names that pop up will be Japanese.

“We didn’t start with the name, we start with the attributes that fit our game model and that is how we came across [Ayaka] Yamashita, [Aoba] Fujino and [Risa] Shimizu. [Yui] Hasegawa was already with us and we were delighted when she decided to renew her contract.”

Fans needn’t wait long for a glimpse of Nielsen’s version of the Nadeshiko. Next month the squad will assemble in the US for the SheBelieves Cup where formidable opposition in Australia, Colombia and the USA await.

“The format this year with three games guaranteed seems to be making sure you don’t use the same team. That would be incredibly hard on the players,” he says. “We want to make sure everyone returns to their clubs in good condition. But we also want to see what they can do against some strong opponents.

“I cannot say everybody will get a start but I expect 22 out of 23 players will receive playing time. It might be difficult to give all three goalkeepers playing time but let’s see.”

When tried and tested methods are no longer effective, a fresh perspective is perhaps the only way forward. Nielsen offers that as a new chapter begins.

Football is for everyone. Everyone should have an equal opportunity and that is what it needs to be taken back to. My responsibility is to continue to highlight important things like that” – the Arsenal great turned pundit Alex Scott provides an important reminder that growth does not necessarily equate to increased equality.

Revenue on the up: The Deloitte Football Money League has released its report into 15 of the top money generating women’s clubs and it shows their revenues surpassed €100m (£85m) for the first time, with cumulative revenues of €116.6m in the 2023-24 season. This is a 35% year-on-year growth when accounting for group income. The ranking is focused on clubs competing in key football leagues (England, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Norway, Brazil and Japan), for which information was available.

Looking to the future: Dar es Salaam in Tanzania played host to a festival with 150 girls aged under 13 familiarising themselves with football fundamentals under the tutoring of several former players and coaches. The exercise aims to open the door for potential careers in the game while teaching all-important life skills. For a nation such as Tanzania, who are yet to qualify for a Women’s World Cup, the initiative is significant in enhancing the appeal and societal standing of football at the local level.

McArdle takes charge: The Scottish FA’s head of elite women’s football, Michael McArdle, will take the role of interim head coach for the national team for the Women’s Nations League games in February. It follows the departure of Pedro Martínez Losa last month. McArdle will take charge of matches against Austria and the Netherlands.

The talent factory that gave us Homare Sawa, Mana Iwabuchi and Yui Hasegawa has done it again. Elite academy Menina produced a convincing performance to overcome INAC in the Japan U18 Championship final with some fine technique on display.

Breaking news: Chelsea agree world record $1.1m deal with San Diego Wave to sign USWNT defender Naomi Girma, Tom Garry reports.

Our writers pick over the weekend’s WSL action in our talking points.

Scotland and Arsenal legend Jen Beattie is hanging up her boots after an 18-year career in which she won 14 trophies. She tells Sophie Downey that she “loved every second of it”.

It was a historic day at Bristol City when they helped become the first to pilot alcohol in the stands at a Women’s Championship game. Sarah Rendell was there.

And Tom Garry reports from Manchester City 2-4 Manchester United, while Suzy takes in Arsenal 5-0 Crystal Palace after profiling Renée Slegers.