High-flying Japan's title credentials to be tested against Sweden

Twelve years ago, 'Nadeshiko' made history by becoming the first, and so far only, Asian country to win the Women's World Cup at the 2011 tournament in Germany.

Futoshi Ikeda's side are in fine form and look on course to match the feat this year, having scored 14 goals in four games to surpass their previous goalscoring record in a campaign.

Hinata Miyazawa has been a key part of Japan's free-flowing and attacking style of play with her tournament-leading five goals, but when asked about the threat posed by the midfielder, Sweden captain and defender Magdalena Eriksson told reporters: "I think that the whole team is a threat.

"Instead of focusing on one player on this Japanese team, I think it's important to look at their whole team.

"The most impressive thing... is that it doesn't really matter who is on the end of their attacks. They are all in sync and have such a clear style of play."

Sweden will be counting on their experience and physicality to push them to victory.

The third-ranked Swedes, who have kept three straight clean sheets, have reached the last eight of the World Cup on seven occasions and eliminated pre-tournament favourites United States in the round of 16.

"This won't be like the physical game we had against the USA. It will be a lot more technical and fast-paced," Sweden boss Peter Gerhardsson told reporters.

"When we get possession we will need to move the ball quickly and make the most of our physical advantage."

Japan have shown remarkable flexibility in the tournament by adjusting their tactics according to the opposition. Ikeda said that would not change on Friday.

"Against Sweden, we need to first figure out where they are putting pressure on us. I think our players will notice that from the beginning," he said.

"After that, we're going to decide where our defensive lines and so on should be. But we don't want to be just about defence. We want to keep compact in midfield and put pressure on them as well."