“I really like my job, it’s good for me and I think it’s great training for futsal,” said Eguchi with a smile after Japan’s 3-0 win over Vietnam in the quarter-finals of the 2025 AFC Women’s Futsal Asian Cup™ China 2025 on Tuesday.

Eguchi nearly stole the spotlight against Vietnam with a string of close calls. Inside 30 seconds, she rattled the crossbar with Japan’s first effort of the game. 

Moments later, she had a second attempt pushed onto the right post by Vietnam’s goalkeeper Le Thi Thanh Ngan. Then, just past the half-hour mark, she unleashed another strike from distance again denied by the crossbar.

“I couldn’t play in the first three matches, but today I wanted to get a goal and tried hard to score,” she said. “I think it’s very good that we can go to the semi-final.”

Eguchi grew up playing football before switching to futsal while appearing for local club Aira FC in the Kagoshima Prefecture. It wasn’t a glamorous start - no elite academy, youth national team, only something stronger – persistence.

Playing for Las Bonitas, one of Japan’s top clubs, alongside national teammates Naomi Matsumoto, Risa Ikadai, and Yukari Miyahara, Eguchi played a key role in the club winning its first league title in 2020/21 and for the subsequent three seasons.

Eguchi was also on the scoresheet prior to her appearance at Hohhot, where she helped Japan lift the SAT-Futsal Championship 2025 in Thailand, scoring the fifth goal in their 5-2 win over the hosts in the final.

While her teammates might recover at spas or prep with nutritionists, Eguchi doesn’t mind her unique double life.

“I work 8am to 6pm at a petrol station car wash,” she said. “Then I train from 9pm to 11pm. I get about six hours of sleep,” she said.

“But I’ve been doing this for 10 years. It’s normal now. It keeps me strong. The job is a good workout. It makes me sharper on the court.”

From car wash to packed arenas, Eguchi embodies persistence with her feet firmly planted on the futsal court, adding that she admires former futsal player Mitsuru Nakamura.

“I look up to him. He has great ball control, quick transition and really good technique. For me I think I have a strong toe-kick and make good decisions on the ball,” she said.

With eight titles across her club career and a growing international resume Eguchi has set her sights on the sport’s biggest stage.

“I want to make a strong impression for the World Cup. But first I want to reach the Final (China 2025) and win the title.”