Arsenal's Takehiro Tomiyasu bodies Leroy Sane during defensive masterclass vs Germany | OneFootball

Highlights

Play Video

Arsenal defender Takehiro Tomiyasu has caught the attention of supporters of the north London club after his standout performance in Japan's 4-1 thrashing of Germany last night. His stellar performance helped his nation to a resounding victory and added to the already pile of pressure that is mounting on Germany coach Hansi Flick.

The defender is usually deployed as a full-back when playing for his club side, usually on the right, but was used at centre-back for his national side's friendly. He can, however, also operate on the left, which is becoming very handy for Mikel Arteta, who continues to experiment and try new things with his side this season.

A compilation has since gone viral on social media which shows the Japanese defender to have had a particularly impressive game, as he looked comfortable on the ball when playing out from the back and won the ball back multiple times off his fellow Arsenal teammate Kai Havertz.

The most noticeable challenge, however, was on Bayern Munich forward Leroy Sane, who he sent flying with a shoulder to shoulder tackle, seemingly with ease.

His performance certainly gives Mikel Arteta an additional selection choice across his back line after the groin injury to Thomas Partey, Rob Holding being sold to Crystal Palace, and Gabriel not starting the first three games of the Premier League season.

One Arsenal supporter commented on his performance via Twitter, saying: "It goes without saying that he seems quite comfortable playing as a centre-back based on his strengths. Arteta might have to rethink this inverted full-back experiment of his, if he watched the match."

More woes for Germany

For Germany, their preparations for Euro 2024 got even worse as they slumped to five games without a win, including three defeats in a row. Sane had drawn the home side level, after Junya Ito scored the opener, only for Ayase Ueda to restore Japan's lead three minutes later.

The visitors then held on impressively despite Germany dominating possession, and finished the game off with two goals after the 90th minute mark. With a home European Championships on the horizon next summer, Germany will want to find some good form in making sure they are competitive at the tournament, especially after their showing at the last World Cup in Qatar.

Video: Tomiyasu's full highlights vs Germany

Former Bayern Munich and Champions League winning boss Flick could potentially be dismissed ahead of the Euros if his side don't see an upturn in their form, having received a steady amount of criticism in Germany since being dumped out of the World Cup last year in the group stages.

Japan, on the other hand, made it three victories in a row after previously beating El Salvador and Peru 6-0 and 4-1 respectively.

After his red card earlier in the season against Crystal Palace and his recover from injury, Tomiyasu will want to continue to put together strong performances as he stakes a real claim to start for Arsenal. This commanding performance comes after a strong season last campaign, where he was one of Arsenal's best defenders before his knee injury, which ruled him out for a considerable period of time.