Japan Win Convincingly Against Honduras

A hat-trick by Keito Nakamura propelled Japan to a convincing 6-1 victory over Honduras in their FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017 opener in Guwahati on Sunday evening.Showing skill and technical ability, Japan proved too difficult to handle for the Hondurans at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium, with Nakamura scoring the first of his three first-half goals with a powerful header from Takefusa Kubo’s corner near the midway point of the half.Nakamura then doubled Japan’s advantage with a neat dribble and finish on the half-hour mark before Honduras replied six minutes later through Patrick Palacios.

However, that lifeline for the central Americans was soon erased, as Nakamura completed his hat-trick on 43 minutes before Kubo made it 4-1 to the Samurai Blue just before the half-time whistle. After the break, Taisei Miyashiro scored a fifth Japanese goal before Toichi Suzuki added a sixth to ensure all three points went to the Asian outfit.