Auckland City FC arrived in Tokyo today and face a tight turnaround before a tough football Club World Cup warm up against Ryutsu Keizai University on Friday night (NZT).
Auckland City veteran James Pritchett was among the bulk of the squad to arrive from New Zealand and while the defender admitted to being a "bit jaded'' following the travel, he said the Ryutsu Keizai University test was already whetting the appetite.
"It won't be easy but we're excited about the challenge,'' Pritchett said.
The team go into a four-day training camp before facing Ryutsu Keizai University at Saitama Stadium _ the home of Urawa Reds _ then back up against the J-League winners on December 8 in the FIFA Club World Cup playoffs.
"The travel is always difficult but we've had enough experience of that with previous Club World Cups so we're looking forward to the challenge ahead,'' Pritchett said.
Ryutsu Keizai University compete in the Japan Football League and will field a close to full-strength line-up for the friendly match against Auckland City.
However sizeable the task, Pritchett believes the carrot of a place in Ramon Tribulietx's Club World Cup line-up can inspire the best out of the Oceania champions.
"There's a big match coming up on December 8 and everyone wants to play. Every time you play for Auckland City you're playing for your place in the line-up and the warm-up game with Ryutsu Keizai University is no different,'' he said.
Coach Ramon Tribulietx is expected to rotate his players for the game with an eye on selecting his line-up for the playoff match.
"Ryutsu Keizai University will be extremely tough and a good hit out for us before we get under way in the tournament,'' Tribulietx said. "We will have to step up and rise to the challenge because with the quality of players they have it will be a very tough match.''
The kick-off time has yet to be confirmed.
