Japan national football team

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Japan men's national football team in 2007

Japan

Nickname

Osim Japan

Association

Japan Football Association

Confederation

AFC (Asia)

Head coach

Ivica Osim

Captain

Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi

Most caps

Masami Ihara (123)

Top scorer

Kunishige Kamamoto (73)

FIFA code

JPN

FIFA ranking

Highest FIFA ranking

9 (February 1998)

Lowest FIFA ranking

62 (February 2000)

Elo ranking

Highest Elo ranking

8 (August 2001, March 2002)

Lowest Elo ranking

112 (September 1962)





First kit





Second kit

First international

Japan 0 - 5 Republic of China

(Tokyo, Japan; May 9, 1917)

Biggest win

Japan 15 - 0 Philippines

(Tokyo, Japan; September 27, 1967)

Biggest defeat

Japan 2 - 15 Philippines

(Tokyo, Japan; September 10, 1917)

World Cup

Appearances

3 (First in 1998)

Best result

Round 2, 2002

AFC Asian Cup

Appearances

5 (First in 1988)

Best result

Winners, 1992, 2000, 2004

Confederations Cup

Appearances

4 (First in 1995)

Best result

2nd, 2001

Men’s Football
Olympic medal record
Bronze	1968 Mexico City	Team

The Japan national football team is the national football team of Japan and is controlled by the Japan Football Association.

On July 21, 2006, Bosnian Ivica Osim, who previously coached Yugoslavia and most recently JEF United Ichihara Chiba, took over as manager, succeeding Zico, who had coached Japan from 2002 through the end of Japan's 2006 FIFA World Cup campaign.^[1]

The team is commonly known by the fans and media as Nihon Daihyo (日本代表 "Japanese representatives"), Daihyo (代表 "representatives"). Although the team does not have an official nickname, it is often known by the name of the manager. For example, under Osim, the team is known as Osim Japan.

[edit] History

Japan's first major achievement in international football came in the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, where the team won the bronze medal. Although this result earned the sport increased recognition in Japan, the absence of a professional domestic league hindered its growth and Japan would not qualify for the FIFA World Cup until 30 years later.^[2]

In 1991, the owners of the semi-professional Japan Soccer League agreed to disband the league and re-form as the professional J. League, partly to raise the sport's profile and to strengthen the national team program. With the launch of the new league in 1993, interest in football and the national team grew.

However, in its first attempt to qualify with professional players, Japan narrowly missed a ticket to the 1994 FIFA World Cup after failing to beat Iraq in the final match of the qualification round, remembered by fans as the Agony of Doha.

The nation's first FIFA World Cup appearance was in 1998, where they lost all three matches. Japan's first two fixtures went 1-0 in favor of Argentina and Croatia, despite playing well in both games. Their campaign ended with an unexpected 2-1 defeat to rank outsiders Jamaica.

Four years later, Japan co-hosted the 2002 FIFA World Cup with South Korea. Despite being held to a 2-2 draw by Belgium in their opening game, the Japanese team advanced to the second round with a 1-0 win over Russia and a 2-0 victory against Tunisia. However, they subsequently exited the tournament during the Round of 16, after losing 1-0 to eventual third-place finishers Turkey.

On June 8, 2005, Japan qualified for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, its third consecutive World Cup, by beating North Korea 2-0 in Bangkok, Thailand. However, Japan failed to advance to the Round of 16 after finishing group play without a win, losing to Australia 1-3, drawing Croatia 0-0 and losing to Brazil 1-4.

Japan has had considerably more success in the Asian Cup, taking home the winner's trophy in three of the last four finals, in 1992, 2000 and 2004. Their principal continental rivals are South Korea, followed by Iran and Saudi Arabia.

In August 2006, incoming head coach Ivica Osim gave the captaincy to Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi, as he felt that the extra responsibilities detracted from former captain Tsuneyasu Miyamoto's contributions to his club team.

[edit] World Cup record

1930 - Did not enter
1934 - Did not enter
1938 - Withdrew
1950 - Banned
1954 - Did not qualify
1958 - Did not enter
1962 - Did not qualify
1966 - Did not enter
1970 to 1994 - Did not qualify
1998 - Round 1
2002 - Round 2
2006 - Round 1

[edit] Asian Cup record

1956 to 1964 - Did not enter
1968 - Did not qualify
1972 - Did not enter
1976 - Did not qualify
1980 - Did not enter
1984 - Did not enter
1988 - Round 1 (student team)
1992 - Champion
1996 - Quarterfinals
2000 - Champion
2004 - Champion
2007 - Qualified

[edit] East Asian Cup record

2003 - Second place
2005 - Second place

[edit] Top goalscorers

As of March 24, 2007

Pos	Player	Goals	Tenure
1	Kunishige Kamamoto	73	1964-1977
2	Kazuyoshi Miura	56	1990-2000
3	Hiromi Hara	37	1978-1988
4	Takuya Takagi	27	1992-1997
5	Kazushi Kimura	26	1979-1986
6	Masashi Nakayama	21	1990-2003
7	Teruki Miyamoto	19	1961-1971
8	Naohiro Takahara	18	2000-present
9	Atsushi Yanagisawa	17	1998-2006
10	Shunsuke Nakamura	16	2000-present

* The players in bold typeface are still active in football.

[edit] Most Capped

As of March 24, 2007

Pos	Player	Caps	Tenure
1	Masami Ihara	123	1988-1999
2	Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi	100	1997-present
3	Kazuyoshi Miura	91	1990-2000
4	Alessandro dos Santos	82	2002-present
5	Satoshi Tsunami	80	1980-1995
6	Hidetoshi Nakata	77	1997-2006
7	Kunishige Kamamoto	75	1964-1977
7	Hiromi Hara	75	1978-1988
9	Tetsuji Hashiratani	72	1988-1995
10	Tsuneyasu Miyamoto	71	2000-2006

* The players in bold typeface are still active in football.

[edit] Current squad

The following players named for friendly match against Peru on March 24, 2007.

Caps and goals as of March 24, 2007, included against Peru.

No.	Pos.	Player	DoB/Age	Caps	Goals	Club
-	GK	Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi (Captain)	15 August 1975	100	0	Jubilo Iwata
-	GK	Eiji Kawashima	20 March 1983	0	0	Kawasaki Frontale
-	GK	Shusaku Nishikawa	18 June 1986	0	0	Oita Trinita
-	DF	Marcus Tulio Tanaka	24 April 1981	6	1	Urawa Red Diamonds
-	DF	Yuki Abe	06 September 1981	13	1	Urawa Red Diamonds
-	DF	Yuji Nakazawa	25 February 1978	54	9	Yokohama F. Marinos
-	MF	Takahiro Futagawa	27 June 1980	1	0	Gamba Osaka
-	MF	Shunsuke Nakamura	24 June 1978	65	16	Celtic
-	MF	Jungo Fujimoto	24 March 1984	1	0	Shimizu S-Pulse
-	MF	Akihiro Ienaga	13 June 1986	1	0	Gamba Osaka
-	MF	Koki Mizuno	6 September 1985	1	0	JEF United Ichihara
-	MF	Keisuke Honda	13 June 1986	0	0	Nagoya Grampus Eight
-	MF	Yuichi Komano	25 July 1981	16	0	Sanfrecce Hiroshima
-	MF	Naotake Hanyu	22 December 1980	6	0	JEF United Ichihara
-	MF	Keita Suzuki	8 July 1981	8	0	Urawa Red Diamonds
-	MF	Kengo Nakamura	31 October 1980	4	1	Kawasaki Frontale
-	MF	Hideo Hashimoto	21 May 1979	0	0	Gamba Osaka
-	MF	Akira Kaji	13 January 1980	50	1	Gamba Osaka
-	MF	Yasuhito Endo	28 January 1980	45	3	Gamba Osaka
-	FW	Naohiro Takahara	4 June 1979	45	18	Eintracht Frankfurt
-	FW	Hisato Sato	12 March 1982	12	3	Sanfrecce Hiroshima
-	FW	Kisho Yano	5 April 1984	1	0	Albirex Niigata
-	FW	Shota Matsuhashi	3 August 1982	0	0	Oita Trinita
-	FW	Seiichiro Maki	7 August 1980	18	4	JEF United Ichihara

[edit] Recent Call Ups

The following players have also been called up to the Serbia squad within the last twelve months.

Goalkeepers

Player	Caps	Goals	Team	Most Recent Call up
Norihiro Yamagishi	0	0	Urawa Reds	Training session, 19 February 2007
Akihiro Hayashi	0	0	Ryutsu Keizai University F.C.	Training session, 19 February 2007

Defenders

Player	Caps	Goals	Team	Most Recent Call up
Tsuneyasu Miyamoto	71	3	Red Bull Salzburg	2006 FIFA World Cup
Koji Nakata	56	2	FC Basel	2006 FIFA World Cup
Hayuma Tanaka	1	0	Yokohama F. Marinos	v. Saudi Arabia, 15 November 2006
Naoaki Aoyama	0	0	Shimizu S-Pulse	v. Saudi Arabia, 15 November 2006
Satoshi Yamaguchi	0	0	Gamba Osaka	v. India, 11 October 2006

Midfielders

Player	Caps	Goals	Team	Most Recent Call up
Alessandro dos Santos	82	7	Red Bull Salzburg	v. Saudi Arabia, 15 November 2006
Junichi Inamoto	65	4	Galatasaray S.K.	2006 FIFA World Cup
Mitsuo Ogasawara	53	7	F.C. Messina Peloro	2006 FIFA World Cup
Yasuyuki Konno	6	0	FC Tokyo	Training session, 19 February 2007
Makoto Hasebe	6	0	Urawa Reds	v. Saudi Arabia, 15 November 2006
Satoru Yamagishi	3	0	JEF United Ichihara Chiba	Training session, 19 February 2007
Yuto Sato	1	0	JEF United Ichihara Chiba	Training session, 19 February 2007
Tsukasa Umesaki	1	0	Grenoble Foot 38	v. Yemen, 6 September 2006
Takuya Nozawa	0	0	Kashima Antlers	Training session, 19 February 2007
Takahito Soma	0	0	Urawa Reds	Training session, 19 February 2007

Forwards

Player	Caps	Goals	Team	Most Recent Call up
Masashi Oguro	21	5	Torino F.C.	2006 FIFA World Cup
Tatsuya Tanaka	6	1	Urawa Reds	v. Yemen, 6 September 2006
Kazuki Ganaha	4	3	Kawasaki Frontale	Training session, 19 February 2007
Ryuji Bando	2	2	Gamba Osaka	Training session, 19 February 2007
Daiki Takamatsu	1	0	Oita Trinita	Training session, 19 February 2007
Ryoichi Maeda	0	0	Jubilo Iwata	v. Saudi Arabia, 15 November 2006

[edit] Former players

[edit] 2006 World Cup Information

[edit] Japan 1-3 Australia

Japan suffered an upset loss in their opening game against Australia. The team took a 1-0 lead on a 26th minute goal by Shunsuke Nakamura. Mark Schwarzer failed to reach Nakamura's cross into the penalty area after collisions in front of the goal, and the ball went untouched into the net.

Australian players protested that Schwarzer had been fouled by Japanese forwards Atsushi Yanagisawa and Naohiro Takahara, but referee Essam Abdullah el Fatah allowed the goal to stand. Schwarzer and Australian captain Mark Viduka claimed that el Fatah apologized after the match for not calling a foul on the play but el Fatah denied issuing an apology, and said that "FIFA’s refereeing committee... agreed unanimously that Japan’s goal against Australia was correct."^[3]

In the second half, Australia manager Guus Hiddink opted for a more attacking formation, substituting in forward Joshua Kennedy and attacking midfielders Tim Cahill and John Aloisi. Japan responded by holding its defensive line low and mixing in occasional counter-attacks for much of the second half, but failed to add to the lead.

Australia had several opportunities in front of the Japanese goal, forcing goalkeeper Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi to make a series of saves, including a double save on Viduka and another save on a Viduka free kick from just outside the penalty area.^[4]^[5]

But Cahill scored the equaliser ('84) moments after the free kick after Kawaguchi misplayed a long throw-in.

Cahill nearly conceded a penalty kick when he tripped Yuichi Komano in the Australian penalty box, but el Fatah allowed the play to go on.^[6]

Minutes later, Cahill scored his second on a shot that deflected off the right goal post into the netting ('89) to put Australia ahead 2-1. Aloisi added another goal in stoppage time ('90+2) to end the game 3-1.

While Australia only held a tiny edge in time of possession, it outshot Japan 20 to 6.^[7] Guido Buchwald, World Cup winner with West Germany and Urawa Red Diamonds manager, had said before the tournament began that Japan needed to be more aggressive, saying "In Japan, the players want to keep the ball. But they must learn to shoot the goal. They cannot finish the play."^[8]

[edit] Japan 0-0 Croatia

The second match, against Croatia, resulted in a draw (0-0), meaning that the Japanese will need to defeat world champions Brazil in order to reach the second round.

Croatia had a first-half opportunity to score when Dado Prso drew a foul from Tsuneyasu Miyamoto inside the penalty area. However, Kawaguchi, dived low to his left to turn away the spot-kick by Darijo Srna (22’), an image later featured that day on the World Cup Official Site as the Moment of the Day.^[9]

Hidetoshi Nakata's first-time strike off a pass from Nakamura drew a flying save from Stipe Pletikosa (36').

One of the best scoring opportunities of the second half for the Japan came when Akira Kaji "burst into the Croatian penalty box and slid the ball across goal to Yanagisawa but, with the goal at his mercy, he somehow shot wide of the gaping net (51')."^[10]

The Man of the Match honor went to Nakata, who "was the link between defence and attack and controlled play superbly", although it was a close decision between him and Kaji, who "ran up and down the flank to great effect, came inside when he had to and showed tremendous commitment throughout the 90 minutes."^[11]

[edit] Japan 1-4 Brazil

Japan came into this match needing to beat Brazil by at least two goals, and for Croatia to defeat or draw with Australia in the other Group F match held simultaneously.

Japan took the lead first when Keiji Tamada scored on an assist from Alex in the 35th minute. However, Ronaldo just before half time tied the match 1-1 going into the second half.

Brazil took the lead for good in the 54th minute when Juninho struck from 30 meters out. Gilberto added a goal in the 60th minute to make the score 3-1, and Ronaldo added his second of the match -and the 14th in World Cup finals, tied for the most all-time with Gerd Müller- in the 81st minute, finishing the scoring at 4-1.

Brazil had 60 percent of the possession and had 14 shots on goal to just three from Japan.^[12]

[edit] World Cup Rosters

	Japan squad - 1998 FIFA World Cup
1 Kojima \| 2 Narahashi \| 3 Soma \| 4 Ihara \| 5 Omura \| 6 Yamaguchi \| 7 Ito \| 8 Nakata \| 9 Nakayama \| 10 Nanami \| 11 Ono \| 12 Lopes \| 13 Hattori \| 14 Okano \| 15 Morishima \| 16 Saito \| 17 Akita \| 18 Jo \| 19 Nakanishi \| 20 Kawaguchi \| 21 Narazaki \| 22 Hirano \| Coach: Okada

	Japan squad - 2002 FIFA World Cup
1 Kawaguchi \| 2 Akita \| 3 Matsuda \| 4 Morioka \| 5 Inamoto \| 6 Hattori \| 7 H. Nakata \| 8 Morishima \| 9 Nishizawa \| 10 Nakayama \| 11 Suzuki \| 12 Narazaki \| 13 Yanagisawa \| 14 Santos \| 15 Fukunishi \| 16 K. Nakata \| 17 Miyamoto \| 18 Ono \| 19 Ogasawara \| 20 Myojin \| 21 Toda \| 22 Ichikawa \| 23 Sogahata \| Coach: Troussier

	Japan squad - 2006 FIFA World Cup
1 Narazaki \| 2 Moniwa \| 3 Komano \| 4 Endo \| 5 Miyamoto \| 6 K. Nakata \| 7 H. Nakata \| 8 Ogasawara \| 9 Takahara \| 10 Nakamura \| 11 Maki \| 12 Doi \| 13 Yanagisawa \| 14 Santos \| 15 Fukunishi \| 16 Oguro \| 17 Inamoto \| 18 Ono \| 19 Tsuboi \| 20 Tamada \| 21 Kaji \| 22 Nakazawa \| 23 Kawaguchi \| Coach: Zico

[edit] Asian Cup Rosters

[edit] Confederations Cup Rosters

[edit] Summer Olympics Rosters

1936 Olympics (Berlin)
1956 Olympics (Melbourne)
1964 Olympics (Tokyo)
1968 Olympics (Mexico City)
1996 Olympics (Atlanta)
2000 Olympics (Sydney)
2004 Olympics (Athens)

[edit] Youth National Team

[edit] FIFA U-20 World Cup record

1977 - Didn't qualify
1979 - Round 1
1981 to 1993 - Didn't qualify
1995 - Quarter-finals
1997 - Quarter-finals
1999 - Runners-up
2001 - Round 1
2003 - Quarter-finals
2005 - Round of 16
2007 - Qualified

[edit] FIFA U-17 World Cup record

1985 to 1991 - Didn't qualify
1993 - Quarter-finals
1995 - Round 1
1997 - Didn't qualify
1999 - Didn't qualify
2001 - Round 1
2003 - Didn't qualify
2005 - Didn't qualify
2007 - Qualified

[edit] Licensing for Video Games

The Japanese national team is currently licensed only for portrayal in video games by Konami (for example, Winning Eleven), and thus does not appear in the FIFA series of football videogames made by EA (although the Japanese national team has been featured in all the FIFA World Cup Games also made by EA).

[edit] See also

[edit] References

^ "Osim unveiled as new coach of Japan", Reuters, 2006-07-21. Retrieved on July 21, 2006.
^ Matsushima, Ken. History of the J.League. Rising Sun News. Retrieved on July 7, 2006.
^ Shoeb, Omar. "Abdul-Fattah: I did not apologize to the Aussies", FilBalad, 2006-06-13. Retrieved on July 7, 2006.
^ "Japan squanders lead as Aussies come from behind to win 3-1", Mainichi Daily News, 2006-06-13. Retrieved on July 7, 2006.
^ "Australia 3-1 Japan", BBC Sport, 2006-06-12. Retrieved on July 7, 2006.
^ Viscusi, Gregory. "World Cup Penalty Count Falls as Referees Hold Back", Bloomberg, 2006-06-14. Retrieved on July 7, 2006.
^ Berlin, Peter. "World Cup: A 6-minute, 32-year victory for Australia", International Herald Tribune, 2006-06-13. Retrieved on July 7, 2006.
^ "Australia turns to Japan for its World Cup secret weapon", Mainichi Daily News, 2006-06-09. Retrieved on July 7, 2006.
^ Japan's goal keeper Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi makes a save on a penalty kick by Croatia's Dado Prso during the first half of their World Cup Group F socc. FIFAworldcup.com (2006-06-18). Retrieved on July 7, 2006.
^ JAPAN 0-0 CROATIA. FIFAworldcup.com (2006-06-18). Retrieved on July 7, 2006.
^ Budweiser Man of the Match: Hidetoshi NAKATA (JPN). FIFAworldcup.com (2006-06-18). Retrieved on July 7, 2006.
^ Kano, Shintaro. "Reality strikes / Japan's lead, hopes of stunning Brazil disappear in instant", Daily Yomiuri, 2006-06-24. Retrieved on July 7, 2006.

[edit] External links

AFC Asian Cup Winners v • d • e
3 titles : Iran (1968, 1972, 1976) Japan (1992, 2000, 2004) Saudi Arabia (1984, 1988, 1996) 2 titles : Korea Republic (1956, 1960) 1 title : Israel (1964) Kuwait (1980)

Seasons in Japan national football team

v • d • e

1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007

Football in Japan

v • d • e

Governing body : Japan Football Association

Champions | Cup Winners

National professional leagues : J. League Division 1 | J. League Division 2
National teams : Men's | Women's

International football

v • d • e

Asia: AFC – Asian Cup

Africa: CAF – African Cup of Nations

North America: CONCACAF – Gold Cup

South America: CONMEBOL – Copa América

Oceania: OFC – Nations Cup

Europe: UEFA – European Championship

Non-FIFA: NF-Board – VIVA World Cup

National football teams of Asia (AFC)

v • d • e

Note: FIFA and AFC use Hong Kong and Macau; the EAFF uses Hong Kong, China and Macau, China.

National football teams of East Asia (EAFF)

v • d • e

All teams are part of the AFC, apart from the Northern Mariana Islands, who are associate part of the OFC.
Note: FIFA and AFC use Hong Kong and Macau; the EAFF uses Hong Kong, China and Macau, China.

2006 FIFA World Cup finalists

v • d • e

Champions: Italy

Runners-up: France

Third place: Germany

Fourth place: Portugal

Eliminated in Quarter-finals: Argentina | Brazil | England | Ukraine

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../j/a/p/Japan_national_football_team.html"

Categories: Current sports events | Asian national football teams | Japan national football team | Football in Japan | National sports teams of Japan

Japan national football team

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Contents

[edit] History

[edit] World Cup record

[edit] Asian Cup record

[edit] East Asian Cup record

[edit] Top goalscorers

[edit] Most Capped

[edit] Current squad

[edit] Recent Call Ups

[edit] Former players

[edit] 2006 World Cup Information

[edit] Japan 1-3 Australia

[edit] Japan 0-0 Croatia

[edit] Japan 1-4 Brazil

[edit] World Cup Rosters

[edit] Asian Cup Rosters

[edit] Confederations Cup Rosters

[edit] Summer Olympics Rosters

[edit] Youth National Team

[edit] FIFA U-20 World Cup record

[edit] FIFA U-17 World Cup record

[edit] Licensing for Video Games

[edit] See also

[edit] References

[edit] External links

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