Ipswich Town attacker Daizen Maeda will unexpectedly be available for a crucial run of games at the start of 2027.
The 29-year-old was set to be involved in Japan’s Asian Cup campaign, which was due to take place from January 7th until February 5th, but the tournament has now been postponed.
Organised in Saudi Arabia, it has been deemed unfeasible to host it this season because of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
If it had gone ahead, Maeda would have missed Town’s home game against Coventry City on January 6th, with Japan pencilled in for their Group F opener against Indonesia on January 11th.
Given that the Samurai Blue were considered to be one of the big favourites to win the competition, there’s every chance that Maeda would have been away for an extended period, missing as many as five Premier League games – Coventry (H), Bournemouth (A), Hull City (H), Aston Villa (A) and Spurs (H).
That's not factoring in Ipswich's FA Cup third-round tie, plus any rest period required at the end of the tournament, which might have limited his involvement against Arsenal (H) as well.
The former Celtic man will instead remain in Suffolk for the entire period, with rearranged dates for the Asian Cup now covering December 23rd, 2027, until January 21st, 2028.
Maeda will almost certainly be away during the upcoming international break, however, with Japan playing friendly games against Brazil (November 14th) and Julio Enciso’s Paraguay (November 17th) in Singapore.
He currently has 33 senior international caps to his name, scoring five times for his country since 2019.
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