Takehiro Tomiyasu didn’t take part in training with Japan on Thursday due to discomfort in his right thigh, according to a report.

Yahoo Japan report that Takehiro Tomiyasu and Hiroki Sakai were both absent from training with the Japan squad on Thursday, with Tomiyasu’s absence related to discomfort in the back of his right thigh.

Sakai’s situation was perhaps even more serious, reportedly visiting the hospital to check on his symptoms. But Tomiyasu’s problem was at least enough to keep him out of training.

Japanese football manager Hajime Moriyasu would only say of the pair: “I don’t know yet about injuries.”

Tomiyasu had initially looked to play down fears of an injury problem after Japan’s 2-1 win over Germany.

Speaking to the media, Tomiyasu suggested he was just playing for time, trying to delay the game a little without pushing it far enough to get the medical staff called on.

“The game was going badly, we were pushed into a corner and my intention was to break the flow by going down a little bit,” Tomiyasu claimed. “If I called for medical attention, I would have had to go off, so I did it well.”

Yet Tomiyasu’s absence from training suggests perhaps his injury was more serious than he let on.

The Arsenal right-back was already injured going into the tournament, which is why he only played the second half against Germany.

Tomiyasu is such a key player for Japan, so you can understand why they brought him on. But they’re clearly going to need to manage him carefully throughout this tournament, assuming he’s fit enough to feature any further.