Netherlands vs Japan World Cup 2026: Why to back Ayase Ueda to Score or Assist at 15/8

The 2026 World Cup is well underway, with all three hosts having played their opening games, and it will be Japan's turn to kick off when they face the Netherlands on Sunday at Dallas Stadium.

Both will be competing before fellow Group F opponents Tunisia and Sweden face each other, so the weekend's clash will be a strong opportunity for one of the two sides to make an incredible start to their campaign in North America.

Many view Japan as potential dark horses for the World Cup, though bet365 have priced a Netherlands win on Sunday at 1/1 (2), with a Japan victory valued at 11/4 (3.75).

Regardless of the outcome, the match is likely to be a close contest, especially as the Japanese come into the fixture off the back of six consecutive victories.

Boss Hajime Moriyasu will hope that the Dutch attack falters, but he will need his own forwards to be at their best if they are to get the better of the likes of Virgil van Dijk at the back.

Can Ayase Ueda score or assist against Netherlands?

Ayase Ueda could be the key man for Japan on the global stage considering no other player in the squad has scored more for the national team (16).

The 27-year-old has also occasionally been the provider for his teammates given he has produced three assists in his 39 appearances for the side, but it should be noted that he has not registered a goal involvement in his three most recent outings for the team.

Ueda managed to score eight times and register two assists during Japan's quest to reach the World Cup, though he did fail to score or assist in four of the nine qualifying matches he played.

The Netherlands will likely be stubborn defensively, and the striker may be Samurai Blue's main weapon, so there could be value in backing Ueda to Score or Assist at 15/8 (2.88) with bet365.

Japan's offensive record assessed

While Ueda will be important on Sunday, he will need his teammates to create chances for him, something that they have struggled to do recently as they have won each of their past three games 1-0.

To their credit, two of those victories came against Scotland and England, and they also managed to keep clean sheets in all three clashes, though they did score 10 goals in their prior four matches.

In their winning streak, Samurai Blue netted three times against Brazil, so they demonstrated that they can threaten some of the world's best teams.

Japan have only scored at least two goals against the Netherlands once in their three meetings, though it is difficult to read much into that record considering the two teams last met in 2013.