WHEN Maya Yoshida takes to the pitch tomorrow, it will be for one of the most intriguing international fixtures of the next week.

The Saints defender is with Japan for their trip to face Syria, in a match that doubles as a qualifier for both the 2018 World Cup and the 2019 Asian Cup.

Obviously, however, this will not be a road that leads to Damascus, with the game instead due to take place nearly 2,000 miles to the south east, at the Al-Seeb Stadium, in Muscat, Oman.

That is now the destination for Syria's 'home' matches, with the bitter conflict which is raging in the Middle Eastern country meaning they are unable to host their own fixtures.

Yet, while the nation is being ripped apart by war, its football team, at first glance anyway, appears to be in anything but a state of disarray.

Syria currently top Group E in the Asian section for the 2018 World Cup, having won each of their opening three matches, scoring 13 goals and conceding none.

That puts them two points clear of Japan, who are in second place, with the Samurai Blue lagging behind due to the surprise 0-0 draw at home to Singapore that started their campaign.

A fourth successive win for Syria would all but assure they advance to the final qualification stage and would spark dreams of them making their first ever World Cup.

But this is not necessarily the simple, unifying tale that it might appear.

There are claims the team is used as a political tool by president Bashar al-Assad's regime, with a rival side - the Free Syria National Football Team - having been set-up in Lebanon.

There have been players who have refused to play, or who have fled the country, been arrested, or even killed as a result of the conflict and human rights crisis that currently envelops the nation.

Yet the team's success does perhaps provide the tiniest of uplifting glimmers amid an overwhelming sea of devastation and division, and a win tomorrow would almost certainly rank among the most significant in the country's history.

It might also leave Japan, who were the first team to qualify for the 2014 tournament in Brazil, a little nervous about their own prospects of reaching Russia in three years' time.

Only the top team in each of the eight Asian groups is guaranteed to advance to the next stage, with the four best runners-up also progressing.

Whatever happens tomorrow, Japan should at least get one of those spots, but they certainly do not want to leave anything to chance.

"The match against Syria is going to be most difficult and most important among the matches we had in this year," said Japan's Bosnian head coach Vahid Halilhodzic, who also described it as "a game we must win".

"They have a couple of good players and don't need so many goal-scoring opportunities.

"I watched about eight of the Syria matches, and I know each player's strength and weakness and the way they play.

"We need to get ready to win the battle. We've got excellent quality and experience. We will come out with confidence and keep winning."