Morten Olsen reveals Denmark's 23 man squad for World Cup.

Denmark coach Morten Olsen on Friday unveiled a 23-man squad that will meet the Netherlands, Cameroon and Japan in group E of the World Cup.

Goalkeepers: Thomas Soerensen (Stoke City/ENG), Stefan Andersen (Broendby), Jesper Christiansen (FC Copenhagen).

Defenders: Daniel Agger (Liverpool/ENG), Simon Kjaer (Palermo/ITA), Per Kroeldrup (Fiorentina/ITA), Lars Jacobsen (Blackburn/ENG), Simon Busk Poulsen (AZ Alkmaar/NED), William Kvist Joergensen (FC Copenhagen), Patrick Mtiliga (Malaga/ESP).

Midfielders: Daniel Jensen (Werder Bremen/GER), Christian Poulsen (Juventus/ITA), Christian Eriksen (Ajax/NED), Jakob Poulsen (AGF), Martin Joergensen (AGF), Mikkel Beckmann (Randers), Thomas Enevoldsen (FC Groningen/NED), Thomas Kahlenberg (Wolfsburg/GER), Dennis Rommedahl (Ajax/NED), Jesper Groenkjaer (FC Copenhagen).

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Strikers: Jon Dahl Tomasson (Feyenoord/NED), Nicklas Bendtner (Arsenal/ENG), Soeren Larsen (Duisburg/GER).

Superior Japan suffer unlucky loss to England.

Fabio Capello's preparation for the World Cup suffered a slight knock as England found themselves struggling against a rampant Japan.

England started sloppily and were punished after six minutes when Marcus Tulio Tanaka met Yasuhito Endo's corner and crashed the ball past David James.

Frank Lampard had a penalty saved before England levelled when Tanaka headed Joe Cole's cross in his own net.

And England stole the win when Yuji Nakazawa turned Ashley Cole's ball in.

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England boss Fabio Capello will trim his squad from the provisional 30 to a 23-man World Cup party on Tuesday and after the match the Italian revealed he had made his mind up who would be selected - but would not share the information.

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Read more about Superior Japan suffer unlucky loss to England....

Japan face tough test against England today.

For England's Manager Fabio Capello it is the last in a series of positive warm up games, but for his Japanese opposite number Takeshi Okada it is another in a what has been a tough warm up series.

Following a poor show by Japan in a 2-0 defeat to arch rivals South Korea in a friendly match on 24 May, Japanese coach Takeshi Okada is now under pressure. He was severely criticized by Japanese media, but Motoaki Inukai, the president of Japan Football Association, asked the coach to continue his job till the world cup 2010.

The upcoming friendly match against England is now seen as a big challenge for Japanese coach who could have been sacked following Japan’s defeat to South Korea unless there was world cup coming up next. Japan will face England on 30 May 2010 in Austria.

South Korea dominated over Japan throughout the match with captain Park Ji-Sung and Park Chu-Young scoring for the visitors. Japanese media reacted very strongly blaming the coach’s irresponsibility.

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On Tuesday, England clinched a 3-1 victory over Mexico at the Wembley stadium in London, but the Three Lions were not as impressive as the score line may suggest. Mexico, in fact, outperformed England in terms of ball possession.

However, England striker Wayne Rooney has assured that they would come back strongly against Japan. Captain Rio Ferdinand also voiced the same. English players would like to give their best against Japan as this is apparently their last chance to claim a place in the final 23-man squad.

So, Japan can expect a more determined England with the players looking to impress coach Fabio Capello. As a result, Takeshi Okada and his team may face tougher challenge from England than what they experience against South Korea at home.

Indomitable Lions 30 man squad.

Cameroon names World Cup squad and includes veterans Rigobert Song and Geremi Njitap.

French coach Paul Le Guen has found places for veterans Rigobert Song and ex-Chelsea midfielder Geremi Njitap.

Cameroon will play in Group E in South Africa alongside Denmark, Japan and The Netherlands.

Bassong's Tottenham team-mate Bennoit Assou Ekotto is also included in the squad after missing the Nations Cup in Angola with an injury.

But Burnley's Andre Bikey has been left out of the line-up.

Coach Le Guen is also giving an opportunity to two home-based players John Patrick Abouna Ndzana of Stars FC Yaounde and Patrick Mevoungou of Canon Sportif.

Other notable inclusions are Samuel Eto'o of Inter Milan and Arsenal midfielder Alexander Song.

The Indomitable Lions kick off their World Cup campaign on 14 June against Japan.

Cameroon squad:

Goalkeepers: Guy Roland N'Dy Assembe (Valenciennes), Idriss Carlos Kameni (Espanyol), Hamidou Souleymanou (Kayserispor), Patrick Tignyemb (Bloemfontein Celtic)

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Defenders: Patrick Abouna (Astres Douala), Benoit Assou Ekotto (Tottenham Hotspur), Sebastien Bassong (Tottenham Hotspur), Gaetan Bong (Valenciennes), Aurelien Chedjou (Lille), Geremi (Ankaragucu), Boukar Makadji (Al Nahdha), Nicolas Nkoulou (Monaco), Rigobert Song (Trabzonspor)

Midfielders: Achille Emana (Real Betis), Enoh Eyong (Ajax Amsterdam), Jean Makoun (Olympique Lyon), Georges Mandjeck (Kaiserslautern), Joel Matip (Schalke 04), Patrick Mevoungou (Canon Yaounde), Marcel Ndjeng (Augsburg), Landry Nguemo (Celtic), Alexandre Song (Arsenal)

Forwards: Vincent Aboubakar (Coton Sport), Eric Choupo-Mating (Nuremburg), Stephane Mbia (Marseille, France), Samuel Eto'o (Inter Milan), Mohamadou Idrissou (Freiburg), Dorge Kouemaha (Club Bruges), Achille Webo (Real Mallorca), Jacques Zoua (Basle)

Japan's samba star is ready for the World Cup

Marcus Tulio Tanaka Japan's Brazilian born defender has vowed to give all for his country in the forth coming world cup

Japan's Brazilian-born defender Marcus Tulio Tanaka has vowed to make his first World Cup a bruising battle he can remember with pride as a hard man among the Blue Samurai.

"I don't want the World Cup finals to be like food that I can't remember the taste of," the J-League Nagoya Grampus player said.

"It would be fantastic if our hard work from the World Cup tastes like strawberries but there is also a possibility it could taste nasty," he told Kyodo news agency in an interview published Wednesday.

"Even if we get hammered and it is not a nice feeling, I want to feel it completely in my body. I don't want to come back home wondering maybe if I could have given a bit more," said the 185-centimetre (six-foot-one-inch) player.

Tulio, who turns 29 on Saturday, is seen as sure to be selected alongside Yokohama F Marinos' Yuji Nakazawa as the main centre backs when Japan face Cameroon, the Netherlands and Denmark at the World Cup group stage in South Africa.

He has scored seven goals in 37 international appearances.

Despite being crowned the 2006 J-League Player of the Year, Tulio was ignored by Japan's then-coach Brazilian legend Zico for the squad that made an early exit from the 2006 World Cup in Germany after losing to Australia and Brazil and drawing with Croatia.

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"Maybe I won't have another chance to play at the World Cup and I just want my whole body to react when someone mentions the tournament in 70 years time, if I'm still alive then," Tulio said.

Tulio first came to Japan, his father's homeland, aged 16, to enrol at a high school as an exchange student and football player. He joined the J-League Sanfrecce Hiroshima in 2001.

He moved to Urawa in 2004 after a year on loan to a second-division side and helped the country's best-supported team win the AFC Champions League title in 2007. He signed with Nagoya in January.

Tulio, who obtained Japanese nationality in 2003, will become the third Brazilian-born player to represent Japan at the World Cup, following Wagner Lopes in 1998 and Nagoya team-mate Alessandro Santos in 2002 and 2006.

He admitted he was at first sceptical of Japan coach Takeshi Okada's ambitious goal of a semi-final spot in South Africa.

"To be honest I also thought 'what?' first of all, but we have played against a number of strong opponents and I see no reason why we can't achieve that," he said.

Serbia wallop Japan 3-0

Japan preparations for the 2010 World cup took a blow in Osaka this week.

Serbia defeated host Japan 3-0 in a friendly football international in which neither team fielded all top players they are set to have at the World Cup in June.

Forward Dragan Mrda got an early double in the third and 22nd minute before Nemanja Tomic wrapped up matters with a free-kick on the hour in Osaka.

Neither Japan nor Serbia fielded their stars who player in foreign leagues. Serbia play Germany, Australia and Ghana at the World Cup in South Africa, Japan are in a group with the Netherlands, Denmark and Cameroon.

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Korea lines up four frendlies ahead of World Cup

South Korea have lined up four high-profile friendlies to prepare for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa this summer.

Huh Jung-moo’s charges will assemble on May 9 and face Ecuador on May 16 in Seoul before taking on fellow qualifiers Japan five days later in Saitama, Japan.

The team then travels to Austria for a training camp before locking horns with Belarus on May 30.

Belarus finished fourth behind England, Ukraine and Croatia in the FIFA World Cup European qualifiers and this will be the first time they will face Korea .

European champions Spain, who are top-ranked in the latest FIFA world rankings, will be the Koreans’ final opponents on June 3 before they head to South Africa.

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Belarus finished fourth behind England, Ukraine and Croatia in the FIFA World Cup European qualifiers and this will be the first time they will face Korea .

European champions Spain, who are top-ranked in the latest FIFA world rankings, will be the Koreans’ final opponents on June 3 before they head to South Africa.

Japan names squad for Serbian friendly

Japan's coach Takeshi Okada has named his 20 man squad for the match against Serbia on Wednesday.

Japan squad:

Goalkeepers: Seigo Narazaki (Nagoya Grampus), Eiji Kawashima (Kawasaki Frontale).

Defenders: Yuji Nakazawa (Yokohama F Marinos), Yuichi Komano (Jubilo Iwata),
Yasuyuki Konno (FC Tokyo), Yuzo Kurihara (Yokohama F Marinos), Yuhei Tokunaga (FC Tokyo) Yuto Nagatomo (FC Tokyo), Atsuto Uchida (Kashima Antlers).

Midfielders: Shunsuke Nakamura (Yokohama F Marinos), Junichi Inamoto (Kawasaki Frontale), Yasuhito Endo (Gamba Osaka), Naohiro Ishikawa (FC Tokyo),
Yuki Abe (Urawa Reds), Koji Yamase (Yokohama F Marinos).

Fowards: Keiji Tamada (Nagoya Grampus), Kisho Yano (Albirex Niigata), Shinji Okazaki (Shimizu S-Pulse), Shinzo Koroki (Kashima Antlers), Kensuke Nagai
(Fukuoka University).

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Serbia is to feature a largely domestic team in Japan friendly.

As Serbia prepare for the World Cup players from the Serbian domestic League are being given a chance to fight for a place in the squad.

Serbia's national football team featuring only players who appear for domestic clubs travelled yesterday to Osaka, Japan, where they take on the host national team on Wednesday.

The coach of the team, Javor boss Radovan Curcic, has called up 18 players for the friendly event, as many as eight of whom will have their debut in the Serbia shirt.

One of the more experienced players in the squad is Red Star right-back Pavle Ninkov, who believes Serbia will be able to be on par with the home nation.

- “This game will serve the purpose of enabling an opportunity for these players to stake their claim and try to impress Serbia boss Radomir Antic and I hope we take our chance. I am glad to be back on the national team, there are some fine players here and I am confident we will be able to take the game to the Japanese,” says Ninkov.

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Nikola Beljic, OFK Beograd midfielder, will wait for his chance to make his debut in the red Serbia shirt.

- “Playing for the national team is both an honour and an obligation. I am sure the Serbian Superliga players will show their qualities and maybe impose our case in national team coach Antic’s World Cup squad plans. I will be up to us to prepare as best we can and justify our selection and live up to the recent success of the senior team,” said Beljic.

Red Star defender Milan Vilotic shares his teammate’s views, who is also to make his debut for the national team in the game against Japan.

- “I expect to give a fine performance in my debut match for the national team. I hope we all fit in well together and take on a Japan side who are in the midst of their pre-World Cup preparations. This team is the future of the Serbian national team and our job will be to show Antic he can count on us,” said Vilotic.