Memphis Depay could be close to starting again at World Cup as Dutch star nurses thigh injury

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ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Memphis Depay, the career international scoring leader for the Netherlands, entered in the 70th minute against Japan in Sunday's World Cup opener.

There might be a hope for a return to the starting lineup for the Dutch star, who is nursing a thigh injury.

Depay, who has 55 international appearances, gave a thumbs-up to reporters when asked how he was feeling after Oranje's 2-2 draw against the Samurai Blue.

“Memphis is almost ready,” said coach Ronald Koeman, whose team plays Sweden in Houston on Saturday. “I feel he is coming.”

The Dutch led 2-1 when Depay, Teun Koopmeiners and Quinten Timber entered as substitutes while Crysencio Summerville, Donyell Malen and Tijjani Reijnders exited.

Summerville scored the second goal for the Netherlands, and Malen had two chances from close range in the first half that were saved by Zion Suzuki.

Japan pulled out the draw when Daichi Kamada scored off Koki Ogawa’s corner kick in the 88th minute.

Koeman was questioned about the substitutions after the Dutch settled for the tie. They extended their unbeaten streak to 17 games in group play, and their remaining games are against the lower-ranked teams in Group F — Sweden (39th) and Tunisia (45th).

The Netherlands, ranked eighth while Japan is No. 18, is the only country to reach the World Cup final three times without winning a title.

“After we scored the first goal, our defense started having difficulty because they were putting more pressure toward our goal,” Koeman said. “If you look at both goals, we didn't defend well. And the second goal there was an unfortunate touch to the ball.”

Kamada's header deflected slightly on its way toward goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen, and the ball bounced off Verbruggen's hands as he made the lunging attempt at a save.

Verbruggen started despite a hip injury sustained in a tune-up match against Uzbekistan last week.

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AP World Cup: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-world-cup