Nils Nielsen won Japan the Asian Cup on March 21. By April 2, he was gone. The Dane's contract expired and he chose not to renew it — leaving one of women's football's most in-form national teams without a permanent head coach heading into three friendlies against the United States.
The Japan Football Association confirmed the departure on Thursday, naming under-20 coach Michihisa Kano as interim head coach for the April fixtures. Nielsen had been in charge for less than four months, appointed in December 2024 after a spell as Manchester City Women's director of football. In that brief window, Japan won the SheBelieves Cup — beating the U.S. in the process — and then lifted the Asian Cup with a 1-0 final victory over hosts Australia. Two titles. One coach. Contract done.
Kano steps in for a high-profile audition
Kano isn't walking into a straightforward situation. Japan meet the USWNT three times this month across three different cities: San Jose on April 11, Seattle on April 14, and Commerce City on April 17. That's a demanding run against a team that will be desperate to reverse the SheBelieves Cup result from earlier this year.
His credentials are solid enough. He guided Japan's under-20 side to the final of the 2024 Under-20 Women's World Cup. But managing a senior squad with this much momentum — and this much talent — is a different challenge entirely. How Japan perform in these three matches will inevitably shape the conversation about who gets the permanent role.
The squad Kano inherits is stacked with European club football experience. Eleven players in this squad are based in the Women's Super League alone, with Manchester City, Liverpool, Brighton, and Everton all represented. This isn't a team in transition. It's a team that's been winning.
Japan's squad for the USWNT friendlies
- Goalkeepers: Yamashita Ayaka (Manchester City), Hirao Chika (Granada CF), Okuma Akane (INAC Kobe Leonessa)
- Defenders: Saki Kumagai (London City Lionesses), Risa Shimizu (Liverpool), Miyabi Moriya (Utah Royals), Hikaru Kitagawa (Everton), Moeka Minami (Brighton & Hove Albion), Hana Takahashi (Urawa Reds Ladies), Yuzuki Yamamoto (Denver Summit), Touko Koga (Tottenham Hotspur)
- Midfielders: Kiko Seike (Brighton & Hove Albion), Yui Hasegawa (Manchester City), Honoka Hayashi (Everton), Fuka Nagano (Liverpool), Remina Chiba (Eintracht Frankfurt), Hinata Miyazawa (Manchester United), Aoba Fujino (Manchester City), Maika Hamano (Tottenham Hotspur), Makoto Matsukubo Manaka (North Carolina Courage), Momoko Tanikawa (Bayern Munich)
- Forwards: Minami Tanaka (Utah Royals), Riko Ueki (West Ham United), Maya Hijikata (Aston Villa)
Japan's odds in these friendlies won't shift much based on the coaching change — the quality in the squad is the constant here. But if Kano struggles to maintain the cohesion Nielsen built, that picture could look different quickly. The USWNT will have done their homework on Japan's recent wins. These aren't going to be comfortable afternoons for either side.
Nielsen departs having gone unbeaten as Japan head coach. Whatever comes next for him, that's not a bad line to leave on.
