Two nations chasing World Cup glory will do battle today in a match between the Ivory Coast and Japan. The 2014 World Cup group-stage match scheduled for 9 p.m. ET will be held at the Arena Pernambuco in Recife and can be live streamed here free. A free Spanish language stream of the match can be found here. Free radio coverage can be found here. Additional TV coverage can be found on ESPN and ESPN Deportes.
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Like most national teams leading up to the World Cup, the Ivory Coast too was dealing with injury concerns. It's star player, Yaya Touré, was hampered with a hamstring injury. Head coach Sabri Lamouchi believes his team is fit enough to feature against Japan this evening, just not 100 percent.
"All my players are ready to play on Saturday, but I can't say they are all 100 percent. Some have had little problems, but they have recovered well and everyone is available," said Lamouchi (via FIFA). "Didier Drogba is doing great. He has fully overcome the injury he suffered playing for Galatasaray. He has had to make enormous sacrifices to make it here. His experience will be very useful."
When asked about his team's chances to finally advance past the group stage, Lamouchi added: "I don't think it will be easier this time. Anyone can progress. I would say Colombia are slight favorites, even without [the injured Radamel] Falcao."
Will the Ivory Coast finally take a proper step towards advancement with a win over Japan? Tell us @SportsWN
Tactical Preview
Player to Watch: Japan's Shinji Kagawa has been in limbo—and out of position—since joining Manchester United in 2012. The 25-year-old made just 14 starts for the club last season, a far cry from the 29-start season he experienced for Borussia Dortmund in 2011 where he contributed 13 goals in eight assists. Not even his two seasons combined at United have been productive enough to eclipse those numbers. He'll look to prove his worth on the international level this evening.
Ivory Coast's Projected Lineup (4-3-3): Barry; Boka, Bamba, Toure, Aurier; Tiote, Zokora, Toure; Kalou, Drogba, Gervinho
Japan's Projected Lineup (4-2-3-1): Kawashima; Nagatomo, Konno, Yoshida, Uchida; Hasebe, Endo; Kiyotake, Honda, Kagawa; Okazaki
Note: Credit all statistics to officially licensed data from Opta Sports (via WhoScored)
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