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Canada and Japan will open up Round 3 of the SheBelieves Cup on Wednesday at the Toyota Stadium in Frisco, USA. Head on to our SheBelieves odd series, featuring our Canada-Japan prediction and pick.
Canada lost its opener to North American neighbors USA 2-0 thanks to two goals from rising star Mallory Swanson. Canada bounced back with a 2-0 victory over Brazil and hopes to finish this tournament as runners-up.
Japan, meanwhile, tallied 1-0 defeats versus Brazil and the USA in this invitational cup. Japan hopes to end the tournament with a point or three in this game with the Canadians.
Here are the USA-Japan soccer odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
SheBelieves Cup Odds: Canada-Japan Odds
Canada: +150
Japan: +185
Draw: +220
Over 2.5 Goals: +116
Under 2.5 Goals: -140
How to Watch Canada vs. Japan
TV: Telemundo Deportes En Vivo, TNT USA, UNIVERSO,
Stream: fuboTV, HBO Max, Peacock Premium, HBO Max
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Time: 4 PM ET / 12:30 PM PT
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Why Canada Can Beat Japan
Canada won their first win in 2023 when they pulled off a 2-0 win against Brazil. Vanessa Gilles opened the scoring in the 31st minute before Evelyne Viens delivered a decisive goal in the 71st to secure the win in Nashville. This was a bounce-back performance for the Canadian women who lost 2-0 to the U.S. in Orlando.
For coach Beverly Priestman, this tourney is one more chance to test new partnerships and young talent on the pitch ahead of the Women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand taking place in July. The sixth-ranked Canadians enter play Wednesday in second place in the SheBelieves Cup table, above number nine Brazil on goal difference. Hoisting the trophy is still possible, as they need to win by at least three goals while hoping that Brazil beat the USA to keep their hopes alive of winning their first SheBelieves title.
Under the cloud of their ongoing labor dispute with Canada Soccer, Canada has had a strong showing last year. They only lost once in international friendly games but had convincing wins over Brazil, Morocco, Argentina, and Australia. They also won over Trinidad and Tobago, Panama, Costa Rica, and jamaica in the CONCACAF Women's Championship, but the USA proved to be a strong squad and defeated them 1-0 in the finals.
Priestman will likely employ Adriana Leon, Ashley Lawrence, and Janine Beckie as starting forwards while Simi Awujo, Julia Grosso, and Jessie Fleming will take midfield duties. Allysha Chapman, Vanessa Gilles, Kadeisha Buchanan, and Jade Rose will start as defenders with Kailen Sheridan slated to take starting duties as the goalkeeper.
Why Japan Can Beat Canada
The Asian side will try to end this competition with a win against Canada. Japan's last six meetings against Canada turned out to be positive, as they only lost one match way back in 2018 in the Algarve Cup. japan won over Canada in three international friendlies and had a 2-1 edge in the first round of the 2012 Olympic Games.
Japan hopes to replicate its run in the AFC Asian Cup and EAFF E-1 Football Championship, where the performances of Riko Ueki, Yuika Sugasawa, Yui Narumiya, and Yui Hasegawa were highlighted. Ueki and Hasegawa should see starting roles while Aoba Fujino, Mana Iwabuchi, Saki Kumagai, and Fuka Nagano will be in the starting XI. Japan will likely field Shiori Miyake, Moeka Minami, Hina Sugita, and Risa Shimizu as the back four, with Ayaka Yamashita slated as starting goalie.
The matchup between both nations will be the first since the 2021 Olympic Games in Group E, where both nations settled for a 1-1 deadlock.
Final Canada-Japan Prediction & Pick
With the tournament coming to a close, expect both teams to pop off and impress the crowd. This has the makings of a high-scoring game, but Canada should have a slight edge over Japan on goals.
Final Canada-Japan Prediction & Pick: Canada (+150), Over 2.5 goals (+116)
