Kashiwa Reysol are making their sixth appearance at Al Kass, and they have made many friends since their tournament debut in 2014, thanks to their thrilling combination of high-octane attacking and never-say-die attitude. This approach has served them well in Doha, where they were beaten finalists in 2018 and third-place finishers last year.

The Japanese side’s preference for developing homegrown talent is embodied by club captain Hidekazu Otani. The tenacious midfielder joined Reysol’s youth setup in 2003. Now aged 35, he is a one-club man, who has represented Kashiwa almost 600 times.

For Al Kass aficionados, however, goalkeeper Leo Kokobu is the Japanese side’s all-time legend. The swashbuckling shot stopper kept goal for Reysol in a record-breaking three tournaments - between 2016 and 2018 - and is now plying his trade with Portuguese giants Benfica.

1 Takumi Itoh
2 Yota Yanagi
3 Ryunosuke Hanamatsu
4 Go Otsuki
5 Kai Adachi
6 Yudai Matsumoto
7 Toru Nishimura
8 Ryoga Tanaka
9 Toi Ohashi
10 Homi Kato
11 Ayuto Date
12 Takumu Nakamura
13 Fuaruzansana (Farzan) Mohamado
14 Tsubasa Ikebata
15 Kaisei Oki
16 Shoma Kurita
17 Sina Osaka
18 Isshin Takizawa
19 Ota Yamamoto
20 Nobuhiro Konno