Takeshi Okada, the manager of Japan's national football team, has announced his 23-man squad for the upcoming World Cup in South Africa, sticking with a squad that fans in Japan have become used to seeing. Perhaps the only suprise was not including Shinji Ono who has been impressive upon his return to Japanese football.
The most experienced member of the squad is goalkeeper Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi, who is currently recovering from a broken leg but should be fit for the tournament, although fans will also be looking towards players like Shunsuke Nakamura and Junichi Inamoto to bring some experience and flair to the side as both have played in the Word Cup before. In fact, experience seems to be the key, as only five of the players named for the squad are under 25, compared with seven members who are aged 30 or over.
Japan face a stiff test right from the get-go, however, as their group includes Holland, Cameroon and Denmark, all of which are currently some places above Japan in the FIFA rankings - especially Holland. This means that even getting past the first round will be a great achievement for the team, yet Okada is sticking to his goal of finishing the tournament as one of the best four. When you consider that in 2006 the best four teams were Italy, Germany, France and Portugal, the reality of the current Japan squad being able to match them seems optimistic at best, downright bonkers at worst. International friendlies against arch-nemesis South Korea, England and the Ivory Coast should give fans a better clue of what to expect when the tournament proper begins.
Hopefully it will give Japanese fans something to cheer about.
Hiromitsu Honda