The Japanese team enter the competition as reigning champions thanks to their success at the tournament’s last edition in 2014, continental glory that allowed them to go on and claim a runners-up spot at the FIFA Women’s World Cup just over a year later.

Despite the glowing reputation that precedes them, Takakura admits that all has, however, not been plain sailing for Japan, but is adamant the niggling issues that have surfaced can be overcome.

“In the last edition of the Women’s Asian Cup we won the title, but we are slowly building a new team,” said the 49-year-old who was appointed in 2016.

The well-oiled Nadeshiko machine of those three campaigns was full of familiar names. But gone now are the likes of Aya Miyama, Shinobu Ono, Yuki Nagasato and, of course, the iconic Homare Sawa who retired after Canada 2015.

For many observers, it will be a partly new-look Japan side that steps onto the field in the AFC Women's Asian Cup 2018 in Jordan later this week seeking to shore up qualification to the 2019 Women’s World Cup in France.

The Nadeshiko have long since been among the continent’s top sides and are the only Asian nation to be crowned world champions at senior level, having defeated the USA 3-1 on penalties to win the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup. 

Japan had twice been behind in the game but Aya Miyama and Homare Sawa drew them level each time, before Saki Kumagai scored the decisive penalty to bring a perfect end to the most memorable of tournaments.

Long before Japan became a global power of the women’s game, Asako Takakura established herself as one of it’s stars

After making her national team debut at the age 16, the Fukushima-native enjoyed stellar playing career, which included 79 international caps, 29 goals and two Nadeshiko League MVP awards at club level.

A coaching career beckoned and, starting in 2013, Takakura won the AFC U-16 Women’s Championship, FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup and AFC U-19 Women’s Championship in successive years.

Hosting the tournament for the second time, Vietnam began with a 3-1 victory over Jordan after Nguyen Thi Muon’s opener was followed with a brace by Le Thu Thanh Huong.

Defeats to Japan and Australia ensued but their opening day victory meant the Southeast Asians had done enough to finish third in their group and book a fifth-place play-off game with Thailand for a berth at the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Canada.

Next came another maiden qualification, this time for the FIFA U-20 World Cup Korea Republic 2017. And their U-23 side began 2018 with a bang, sweeping past the likes of Australia and Iraq en route to the final of the AFC U23 Championship China 2018.

Now the country's women team has the opportunity to create their own milestone moment. A top-five finish at next week’s AFC Women's Asian Cup Jordan 2018 will see the team win through their first ever FIFA Women's World Cup.

"I do hope our team will qualify," Mai Duc Chung, head coach of Vietnam, told FIFA.com. "We enter the qualifying competition motivated, and we hope we can go further."

Join the-AFC.com as we take a look at the facts and figures of the Continent's premier women's football tournament.

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13 – Jordan’s Maysa Jbarah (pictured above) scored 13 goals in five matches to be the most prolific scorer in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2018 Qualifiers. She scored four goals against both Iraq and the United Arab Emirates, a hat-trick against Bahrain and a double against the Philippines. Jbarah’s lethal finishing earned her a goal every 32 minutes she was on the pitch.

3,665 – The number of days after Philippines veteran Patrice Impelido played in her first AFC Women’s Asian Cup qualifier (against Korea Republic in 2008), the defender is set to finally make her tournament debut against Jordan on Matchday One.

17 – Playing in her fifth AFC Women’s Asian Cup in Jordan, Australia’s Lisa De Vanna has previously appeared in 17 matches in the competition and scored seven goals. She has scored at least once in every edition of the tournament since 2006.