Canada books March 22 friendly against Japan

The Canadian Soccer Association announced Thursday that it has booked March 22 men’s national-team friendly against another high-profile opponent — Japan. The Canadian men’s team will face the Japanese on neutral ground — in Doha, Qatar, the city that will likely host the 2022 World Cup final. The question is — who will coach Canada in that game? The Canadian Soccer Association brought in Colin Miller to run the team for the Jan. 26 friendly against Denmark and the Jan. 29 friendly against the Americans. But Miller was clear his interim tag expired at the end of those two matches, as he will be “100 per cent committed” to his job of coaching FC Edmonton after that. FCE has confirmed that Miller is scheduled to return to the team Feb. 10. And March 22 is the tentative date for the start of the NASL side’s training camp. Japan has recently played friendlies against Brazil and France, and is currently breezing through Asian qualifying for the 2014 World Cup — and could clinch a spot as early as March. Manager Alberto Zaccheroni, though, wants to bring some youth to the team in 2013. “We have many younger players on our national team and they have big potential,” he told the JFA website in a year-end interview. “They can develop a lot more. I hope they can gain experience and show their capabilities with consistent accuracy and aggressiveness. I give them a lot of attention as they are the ones who can support the development of Japanese football in the future. I am interested in their growth. When I started this Japan job, I set three objectives: to qualify for the World Cup and to play well there, and to leave some kind of legacy for the future of Japanese football.”