Tomiyasu and Mitoma named in Japan's World Cup squad
Japan are the first nation to select their squad for Qatar with manager Hajime Moriyasu including the maximum number of 26 players allowed for the tournament.
The Premier League duo were picked alongside former Liverpool star Takumi Minamino (27) and ex-Southampton defender Maya Yoshida (34), who play for Monaco and Schalke respectively.
Huddersfield Town's Yuta Nakayama was initially selected for the squad but has since withdrawn through injury. The 25-year-old defender damaged his Achilles tendon against Sunderland earlier this month and has been ruled out for the rest of the season. He has been replaced by Shonan Bellmare forward Machino (23).
FIFA rules stipulate countries can select between 23 and 26 players, up from the previous of limit of 23, in line with the Covid-19 rule change that allows for five substitutions during matches instead of three.
The deadline for all squad announcements is 6pm on November 14th with FIFA unveiling all teams the following day.
Countries can replace players who fall ill or injured 24 hours before their first World Cup match.
Japan kick-off their World Cup campaign against Germany at Doha's Khalifa International Stadium on November 23rd, followed by Costa Rica on November 27th and end Group E against Spain on December 1st, as they bid to go beyond the last 16 for the first time in their history.
Japan squad
Goalkeepers: Eiji Kawashima (Strasbourg), Daniel Schmidt (Sint Truiden), Shuichi Gonda (Shimizu S-Pulse)
Defenders: Hiroki Sakai (Urawa Red Diamonds), Miki Yamane (Kawasaki Frontale), Ko Itakura (Borussia Monchengladbach), Takehiro Tomiyasu (Arsenal), Maya Yoshida (Schalke 04), Shogo Taniguchi (Kawasaki Frontale), Hiroki Ito (VfB Stuttgart), Yuto Nagatomo (FC Tokyo), Yuta Nakayama (since withdrawn)
Midfielders: Junya Ito (Stade de Reims), Ritsu Doan (SC Freiburg), Wataru Endo (VfB Stuttgart), Hidemasa Morita (Sporting), Ao Tanaka (Fortuna Dusseldorf), Daichi Kamada (Eintracht Frankfurt), Takefusa Kubo (Real Sociedad), Takumi Minamino (AS Monaco), Kaoru Mitoma (Brighton & Hove Albion), Gaku Shibasaki (Leganes), Yuki Soma (Nagoya Grampus)
Forwards: Takuma Asano (Vfl Bochum), Daizen Maeda (Celtic), Ayase Ueda (Cercle Brugge)
