Japanese Players In Europe

Takashi Inui celebrates with Sebastian Rode after scoring against Nurnberg.

This past week was another great one for Japanese footballers in Europe.

Takashi Inui got things started on Friday, when he scored in Eintracht’s 2-1 win away at Nurnberg. His goal in the 60^th minute, cutting in from the left and lashing a low shot past Raphael Schafer, was the eventual match winner. Then in the midweek match at home to Borussia Dortmund, he starred as Frankfurt continued their great start and got a 0-0 to the two-time defending champions. Eintracht entered the half trailing 2-0 but Inui helped start the comeback, assisting Stefan Aigner’s goal in the 49^th minute. He then scored the equalizer in the 51^st with a header. It was his third goal in as many Bundesliga matches. Dortmund retook the lead through Mario Gotze in the 54^th minute, but Anderson Bamba equalized in 73^rd to earn a point for Eintracht.

Frankfurt’s great start and Inui’s performances have been getting a lot of attention recently. Before drawing with Dortmund, Frankfurt’s four consecutive league wins were a record for a newly-promoted team. As for Inui, in his recent column for The Guardian Rafa Honigstein gave him the tongue-in-cheek nickname “the new, new Kagawa.”He’s certainly been great to watch and his own and Frankfurt’s success have been an exciting story so far in the Bundesliga.

In that 2-1 loss to Frankfurt, Hiroshi Kiyotake put in another excellent performance for Nurnberg. He collected yet another set-piece assist, this time for Sebastian Polter, and it was his third straight match in which he had assisted or scored (he assisted in all of them). In the midweek game, Nurnberg lost 4-1 away to Hannover. Kiyotake maintained his first team place.

Takashi Usami retained his starting spot as Hoffenheim beat Hannover 3-1 over the weekend, their first points of the season. Then in the midweek, Hoffenheim continued their fine play and beat Stuttgart 3-0 away. Usami opened the scoring in the 5^th minute with an excellent dribble to get away from a defender before applying a composed finish when one-on-one with the keeper.

Stuttgart came back from 2-0 down to draw with Werder Bremen 2-2 away. Both Shinji Okazaki and Gotoku Sakaistarted. However, in the midweek against Hoffenheim they were unable to pick up where they left off and were humbled by Usami and co. Okazaki and Sakai both started that match as well.

Hiroki Sakai came on in the 74^th minute for Manuel Schmiedebach in Hannover’s 3-1 loss to Hoffenheim over the weekend. He did not feature in their 4-1 mauling of Nurnberg.

Hajime Hosogai played the entire match at rightback in last week’s 0-0 home draw to Metalist Kharkiv in the Europa League. He did not feature in the weekend league match against Borussia Monchengladbach, a 1-1 draw at home. In the midweek 3-1 away win at his old club Augsburg, he came on in the 38^th minute for Stefan Reinartz who was forced off with an injury.

Shinji Kagawa returned to the starting lineup for Manchester United in an emotionally charged match away to Liverpool. While United did win 2-1, they were vastly outplayed by Liverpool, even when the hosts were reduced to 10 men before halftime. Kagawa and the United midfield were reduced to spectators as Joe Allen, Steven Gerrard, and Jonjo Shelvey passed around them with ease. Kagawa did record an assist, as his chested pass to Rafael was followed by an exquisite curled shot that went in off the post. But it was another difficult game for himself as he comes to grips with the muscular side of life in the Premier League. He was substituted for Chicharito in the 81^st minute.

Ryo Miyaichi came on as a substitute for Gary Caldwell in 77^th minute as Wigan sought to get back in the game against Fulham this past weekend. They did manage to pull one back in stoppage time, but still fell 2-1 at home. During the week Miyaichi played the entire match as Wigan beat West Ham 4-1 away to advance in the “Capital One” cup.

Maya Yoshida was in the starting lineup as Southampton earned their first points of the season, a 4-1 win at home to Aston Villa. After going behind 1-0, Southampton came roaring back to score four times in the second half. During the week, they beat Sheffield Wednesday 2-0 at home. Yoshida played the entire game.

Over the weekend, CSKA Moscow beat Volga 3-2 away. Keisuke Honda set up the Ahmed Musa’s winner in the 87^th minute. It was a case of returning the favor, as Musa had set up both of Honda’s goals the week before against Alaniya. He was then substituted off two minutes later.

Last week, Yuto Nagatomo scored in the second minute of stoppage time to earn Inter a 2-2 home draw with Rubin Kazan in the Champions League. It was fine strike from Nagatomo as he saved Inter from a terrible result to start their European campaign. He played at leftback in the game. During the weekend, the San Siro curse struck again as Inter lost 2-0 at home to Siena. Nagatomo played the entire match at rightback. Inter have lost or drawn every match at home so far this season. During the week, they beat Chievo 2-0 away and Nagatomo played in right midfield. His deflected shot was put in by Alvaro Pereira for Inter’s first.

Mike Havenaar came on for the second half this past weekend in Vitesse’s 1-1 home draw to Heracles. He andMichihiro Yasuda played the entire 90 minutes of Vitesse’s 3-0 cup win away at Gemert during the week.

Hiroshi Ibusuki scored in a second consecutive game for AS Eupen. They lost 2-1 to Brussels. I did not watch this game.

Japanese Players In Europe

Shinji Kagawa struggled against an excellent Southampton midfield.

Shinji Kagawa started in the No.10 position for Manchester United in their 3-2 win at Southampton. In the opening minutes, United kept possession and pinned Southampton inside their own box with quick passes. However, after weathering this initial storm, Southampton came into the game and outplayed United for the majority of the first half. Ricky Lambert headed them into the lead, rising easily over Rafael and leaving Anders Lindegaard with no chance. If not for an untimely slip from fullback Nathaniel Clyne, allowing Robin van Persie to equalize, Southampton could’ve gone into the break with the lead. Southampton continued to play well in the second half and looked to have collected all three points going into the last five minutes with a 2-1 lead. However, van Persie scored twice to snatch the win for United and steal a first league win for Southampton.

Kagawa struggled in this game and was substituted for Nani in the 61st minute. In the Fulham match, Kagawa was brushed aside and lost possession several times against the massive Moussa Dembele. The physical side of the Premier League is something that he will, like all newcomers, take time to adapt to. While it’s not every week that he will face a midfield power/dynamo combo like Dembele, every team throws around its weight in the middle of the park, as Southampton showed. Morgan Schneiderlin and young James Ward-Prowse were outstanding and powered through a relatively delicate United midfield. It is no wonder that all of United’s goals were set up on the wing. There will be games like this for Kagawa as he gets used to the burly side to Premier League football. Tadanari Lee was an unused substitute, while Maya Yoshida was unavailable.

Stuttgart is stuck on 0 points in the Bundesliga after they were obliterated 6-1 by Bayern, a match that both Shinji Okazaki and Gotoku Sakai started. Okazaki was caught in possession by Luis Gustavo Dias for Bayern’s second goal. Gustavo played the ball to Toni Kroos who lashed in an unstoppable shot past Sven Ulreich.

Sakai was also caught in possession, for Bayern’s fourth goal. To his credit, after he was dispossessed by Kroos, Sakai raced across the pitch to heroically block Thomas Muller’s shot. However, he could only watch in despair as the ball rolled to Mario Mandzukic who tapped in.

Okazaki was subbed off in the 69th while Sakai played the entire 90 minutes. Not a great day for either of them, but it was Bayern and it is still early in the season.

Hiroshi Kiyotake started and played the entire match as FC Nurnberg drew 1-1 at home to Dortmund. Kiyotake set up Tomas Peckhart for Nurnberg’s goal with a corner. Nurnberg weren’t without their chances and did not hesitate to attack against the reigning champions.

Schalke beat Augsburg 3-1 at home, and Atsuto Uchida started and played the entire match at rightback.

Eintracht Frankfurt dealt Hoffenheim a heavy 4-0 home defeat. Takashi Inui started for Eintracht and was credited an assist for the first goal. He set up Alex Meier and the shot found its way into net, though only after a massive deflection off of Marvin Compper. Takashi Usami came on to play the second half for Hoffenheim.

Vitesse beat Feyenoord 1-0 at home to continue their excellent start to the Eredivise season. Mike Havenaar came on in the 81st minute and set up Wilfried Bony’s stoppage time winner with a shot/cross that Bony elegantly flicked into goal. Vitesse are now in second place with 1o points going into the international break.

Wigan Athletic drew 2-2 at home to Stoke. Ryo Miyaichi came on for Franco Di Santo for the last 10 minutes.

Keisuke Honda played the entire match as CSKA beat Krasnodar 1-0 away.

Yuto Nagatomo started and played the entire match as Inter were overrun by the attacking waves of Zdenek Zeman’s Roma, 3-1 at home.

Yuki Otsu has joined VVV Venlo on-loan from Monchengladbach. He will link up with Robert Cullen who was an unused substitute in their 1-0 loss at Twente.

Japanese Players In Europe

Shinji Kagawa celebrates his first goal for Manchester United with his teammates.

As the European leagues got underway this weekend, more and more Japanese players took to pitches for teams across the continent. Several players made debuts for their new teams, and notably, we had the third Japanese player to score in the English Premier League.

A week after impressing on his competitive debut for Manchester United, Shinji Kagawa became the third Japanese player to score in the English Premier League. In the 35th minute, Kagawa gave United a 2-1 lead in an eventual 3-2 win over Fulham. Playing as the No 10 behind Robin van Persie, Kagawa was again electric, at the heart of a mesmerizing 20 minute display in the first half from United that had Fulham on the ropes. His short passes and quick movement inspired the rest of the United attacking six to play at a dazzling pace that Fulham could hardly defend. There was a Dortmund-esque verve to their play. After a poor showing against Everton, Wayne Rooney was dropped, allowing Kagawa to play in his favored central position. He came on for Kagawa in the 68th but then suffered a terrible thigh gash and had to be carried off. He will be out for at least a month, which means Kagawa will likely continue playing as the No 10.

The goal itself was a tap-in, and that it wasn’t called off for offsides surprised everyone, including Kagawa. He follows Junichi Inamoto and Hidetoshi Nakata as Japanese goalscorers in the Premier League. Hopefully several others will follow him this season.

Hiroshi Kiyotake made his debut for FC Nurnberg, playing the entire 90 minutes in a 1-0 win over Hamburg.

Takashi Inui also made his debut for Eintracht Frankfurt, starting in a 2-1 win over Bayer Leverkusen. He was involved in Frankfurt’s equalizer, as his shot was only parried by Bernd Leno into the path of Stefan Aigner who finished well. Hajime Hosogai was an unused substitute for Leverkusen.

Takashi Usami came off the bench to make his debut for Hoffenheim in a 2-1 loss to Borussia Monchengladbach. He will look to break into the staring XI as the season progresses. Yuki Otsu was not included for Gladbach–more on a potential move away later.

Yuto Nagatomo played the entire 90 minutes as Inter beat newly-promoted Pescara 3-0. He also played the entire 90 minutes in a 2-2 draw with Romanian side FC Vaslui, which was enough for Inter to advance on. Similarly in Russia, Keisuke Honda played the entire 90 minutes in CSKA Moscow’s 3-0 win over Kryliya Sovetov. However, CSKA suffered major disappointment during the week, getting knocked out of the Europa League by Swedish side AIK.

In Holland, Maya Yoshida played the entire 90 minutes in a 4-2 loss to Ado Den Haag. More on him later. Robert Cullen came on in the 67th minute. For Vitesse, Michihiro Yasuda played the entire 90 minutes in a 2-0 win over Willem II. Mike Havenaar came on in the 54th minute.

In Europa League action, VFB Suttgart knocked out Dinamo Moscow 3-1 on aggregate after a 1-1 draw in Moscow. Gotoku Sakai and Shinji Okazaki both played the entire 90 minutes. Hannover 96 completed a 10-4 aggregate thumping of Slask Wroclaw with a 5-1 home win. Hiroki Sakai came on off the bench and set up the final goal with a delightful cross to Szabolcs Huszti.

Last but not least, English League Cup action. Tadanari Lee scored and played the entire 90 minutes in Southampton’s 4-1 win over Stevenage. It was a great way for him to mark his return from injury. Ryo Miyaichi came on for the last 10 minutes of Wigan’s 4-1 win over Nottingham Forest, which feature a couple great goals. Miyaichi got an assist for Wigan’s fourth, though Callum McManaman still had to beat a couple of players to score. An interesting stat from WhoScored.com: Miyaichi created a chance on average once every 32 minutes last season, 11th best in the Premier League.

Some transfer news: Maya Yoshida has completed a move to Southampton. He leaves one Japanese teammate (Robert Cullen) to join another (Tadanari Lee). The transfer fee was £2 million. Yoshida says that to play in the Premier League has been “one of my biggest dreams since I was a child.” Congrats to him on the move; that makes four Japanese players in the Premier League–let’s hope for more goals scored. Meanwhile, Yuki Otsu has been linked with a loan move to Celtic. It would be a good more for him; he’d play regularly and in the Champions League. Hiroshi Ibusuki has joined Belgian second division side KAS Eupen on loan from Sevilla.

The Summer So Far

Sorry for the extended absence–I just finished school and graduated. There was a lot to tie up at the end and things got quite busy, but graduation was one of the proudest days of my life. Congratulations to the Dartmouth Class of 2012!

While I’ve been away, there has been a lot going on in the world of Japanese football. For one, the next round of World Cup qualification began. Japan has got off to a flying start, and the match with Australia was one of the more electric qualifying matches for any tournament that I’ve seen. Shinji Kagawa has moved to Manchester United. As expected, the best Japanese player over the past two seasons has completed his dream move to England. Takashi Usami has moved to Hoffenheim. After a season of limited opportunities at Bayern, Usami moved to a different Bundesliga team where his playing time will most likely increase dramatically. Finally, the preliminary Japanese Olympic football team has been announced. I’ll examine all these things in the coming days as I get back to posting regularly.

Japan has gotten off to a great start in the fourth round of World Cup qualification. After three matches played in Group B, Japan is in first place with 7 points and a +9 goal difference. They started things off with a 3-0 home win over Oman, and then a 6-0 home win over Jordan. Honda scored a hat trick in the second game. In their third match, they earned a 1-1 draw away to Australia, in what was likely their most difficult fixture of the round. With two sendings off and an electric crowd of over 40,000, the match was a great spectacle. Next up for Japan is a home match with Iraq on 11 September.

Shinji Kagawa moves to Manchester United. Kagawa signed a four-year deal on Friday, 22 June. He had previously said that the Premier League was his dream destination, and after he rejected renewed terms from Dortmund, it was widely expected that his dream would be realized. When Alex Ferguson was on hand to watch Kagawa play an instrumental role in Dortmund’s 5-2 mauling of Bayern Munich in the DFB Pokal Final, a move to United seemed a certainty. After he signed, there was speculation as to whether he would wear the famous No. 7 shirt, with previous holder Michael Owen having been released. However, Kagawa said that he could not yet wear the shirt as he had not yet accomplished anything with the club, and would instead chose a number with “personal meaning.” I will post on where Kagawa will likely play for United and the implication his success could have for the national team in the coming days. But for now, congratulations to a great player on a great move! Personally, I can’t think of a team where he would be better suited to succeed.

Takashi Usami moves to TSG Hoffenheim. Usami found first team opportunities few and far between at Bayern last season. With Ribery and Robben playing the same position as him, it was always going to be difficult for Usami to break into the first team. He was a standout for the reserve team, however, and was regularly rewarded for his good play with a place on the first team bench. The move to Hoffenheim is perfect, and he should get consistent first team playing time.He’s still only 20 years old, and a good debut season could be the first step in a successful career in Europe.

The preliminary squad for Japan’s Olympic men’s football team has been announced. The 35-man roster includes Ryo Miyaichi, Hiroki Sakai (recently signed with Hannover 96), Gotoku Sakai, Hiroshi Kiyotake, and Usami. The three overage players are Yuhei Tokunaga (def, FC Tokyo), Maya Yoshida, and Akihiro Hayashi (gk, Shimizu S-Pulse). Kagawa and Honda were both left out after long club seasons. The squad will be trimmed to 18 + 4 reserve players by 11 July.

Look forward to regular posting now that I have graduated.

Japanese Players in Europe

Borussia Dortmund clinched the Bundesliga title this weekend with a 2-0 home win over Borussia Monchengladbach. Shinji Kagawa scored the second goal, with a neat finish around Marc-Andre ter Stegen. His goal set off rapturous celebrations around the Westfalenstadion, with Jurgen Klopp running all the way from the technical area to be the first person to greet him. It was a fantastic scene, and it was good to see a great team finally break Bayern’s biennial tradition of being champions. Kagawa now has thirteen league goals, and should be a contender for Bundesliga Player of the Year. Highlights.

Stuttgart drew 1-1 away at Koln. Gotoku Sakai played the entire match, and Shinji Okazaki came on in the 69th minute for Martin Harnik. They remain in fifth place, six points off of Gladbach and Champions League qualification.

Vitesse drew 1-1 away at Heerenveen. Michihiro Yasuda played the entire match, and Mike Havenaar came on and scored a pretty equalizer. It was Mike’s fifth goal of the season since moving to the Eredivisie over the winter break. Vitesse remain in seventh and in a Europa League playoff spot. Video.

Inter could only muster a goalless draw away at Fiorentina on Sunday. Nagatomo came on in the second half for Javier Zanetti. Things got better on Wednesday, as they beat Udinese 3-1 away. Nagatomo played the entire match. The result brought Inter level on points with Udinese.

Takashi Usami played the entire match for Bayern Munich in a 2-1 win over Werder Bremen. It was nice to see Usami playing, but overall it’s been a shame to watch him on the bench. Maybe he’ll continue to get playing time in the Bundesliga and will earn a spot among the Champions League final substitutes.

Japanese Players in Europe

Borussia Dortmund look set to retain their Bundesliga title, after beating local rivals Schalke 2-1. Goals from Lukasz Pisczek and Sebastian Kehl were enough to overturn an early stunner from Jefferson Farfan. Shinji Kagawa played the entire match. Atsuto Uchida started and was substituted for Ciprian Marica in the 85th minute. The victory, coupled with Bayern’s 0-0 draw at home to Mainz, puts Dortmund eight points clear at the top of the Bundesliga, with three matches to go. Highlights.

Ryo Miyaichi came off the bench for Chris Eagles in Bolton’s 2-0 defeat at Newcastle. The defeat put Bolton in the relegation zone along with Wolves and Blackburn, though they have played two fewer than QPR who are a point above them. Wolves will surely go down, so the fight to avoid the other two places will be between Bolton, Blackburn, QPR, Wigan, and Aston Villa. Bolton face Villa away in two weeks time.

Gotoku Sakai played the entire match as Stuttgart beat Bremen 4-1. Christian Gentner, Martin Harnik, and Cacau scored as Stuttgart came back to win emphatically. The win solidifies their hold on fifth place and a place in next year’s Europa League. Sakai set up the fourth with a well-delivered freekick, which Cacau headed in. Shinji Okazaki came on for the final ten minutes, after missing over a month through injury. Highlights.

Japanese Players in Europe

Shinji Kagawa scored the only goal of the match as Borussia Dortmund defeated Werder Bremen 1-0. The win maintains Dortmund’s 5 point lead over Bayern Munich and extends their Bundesliga record unbeaten run to 20 matches. The goal was another great team move with Ilkay Gundogan selflessly laying it on a plate for Kagawa to score his ninth league goal of the season. Not a bad way to celebrate his 23rd birthday. Highlights.

Shinji Okazaki sat out Stuttgart’s 2-1 win over Hoffenheim through injury. He will be out for around three weeks after suffering ligament tears in his knee. Gotoku Sakai played the entire match as Stuttgart moved closer to European qualification. Vedad Ibisevic scored twice against his former team.

Takashi Inui scored but couldn’t prevent Bochum from losing 2-1 to MSV Duisberg. It was his seventh goal of the season. He has recently been the subject of interest from Galatasary and could move to Istanbul this summer.

Ryo Miyaichi started for Bolton in their F.A. Cup tie against Tottenham. However, the match was abandoned as Bolton’s Fabrice Muamba collapsed on the pitch from cardiac arrest. He was treated for ten minutes before being rushed to the London Chest Hospital. Updates report that while Muamba remains in critical condition, his heart no longer needs medication to keep working. Hopefully his condition continues to improve. Get well soon, Fabrice.

J. League updates in the coming days.

Japan 0-1 Uzbekistan

Japan lost its final third round World Cup Qualifier to Uzbekistan on Wednesday. Alexandr Shadrin scored the only goal in the 53rd minute. It’s a disappointing result, but not one to fret too much over.

Both teams had secured qualification so it could’ve played out as a friendly, but Japan fielded its strongest lineup. Shinji Kagawa was a surprise inclusion, after initially being expected to miss out because of injury. Only Keisuke Honda was missing.

In fact, Uzbekistan was the more injury-troubled team, with 5 usual starters missing out, including captain and two-time Asian Footballer of the Year Server Djeparov and Anzhi midfielder Odil Ahmedov.

Japan dominated the first half, keeping all of possession and attacking constantly. In the 16th minute, Kagawa dribbled through the Uzbek midfield and passed to Mike Havenaar. He played a decent pass into the box aimed for Shinji Okazaki, but it was cut out by Islom Inomov, almost into his own net.

Kagawa continued to find open spaces, and in the 22nd he played a pass into Okazaki, who took out an Uzbek defender with an expert cutback, before smashing a shot off the top left corner of the goal.

Okazaki then put the ball into the net in the 36th minute, but it was rightly called off because of a foul by Mike. The sides entered the half at 0-0, with Japan undoubtedly frustrated that they hadn’t scored.

Uzbekistan scored the lone goal in the 53rd on a counter-attack. Japan seemed to have numbers back, but a perfect cross from Jasur Hasanov put it on a plate for Bahodir Nasimov. His diving header was right at Kawashima, but Alexandr Shadrin was there to slam home the rebound for his first senior team goal.

As the half wore on, Japan looked increasingly fatigued, with Kagawa and Nagatomo visibly laboring. They still attacked persistently and kept possession but were unable to create any clear chances. The best opportunity came in the 72nd, when a last ditch tackle prevented Kagawa from leveling the score after being played through by Takashi Inui.

Uzbekistan should’ve made it 2-0 in the second minute of added time when Hasanov was one-on-one with Kawashima. However his shot was tame and right at the keeper.

After the final whistle, players from both sides collapsed in exhaustion and the Uzbek players celebrated in joy. It was a deserved win for them, who defended well and looked dangerous on the counter-attack.

The message-boarders seem to agree that the players didn’t take the match seriously. I’m not convinced that was the case, and think it had more to do with it just being an off day and a lot of key players being fatigued. Most of the Europe-based players had matches over the weekend and probably felt the effects of jet lag.

Captain Makoto Hasebe and Atsuto Uchida didn’t exactly cover themselves in glory. Both looked tired and out of form, probably because neither are consistently getting into the first teams at their club sides. Hasebe looked especially tired and slow. Uchida was just uninvolved, with most of Japan’s attack coming from the left. Jungo Fujimoto also did not play his best, and was far less influential than he was on Friday against Iceland.

Takashi Inui played well, but he tended to drift inside instead of sticking to the wings. Nonetheless, he was able to play some clever passes and kept Japan attacking throughout.

We did not get the highly anticipated debut of Ryo Miyaichi, which was disappointing. Many think that Ryo would have brought that little extra to break down the valiant Uzbek defense. He might well have done that, but the creative players already on the field were doing a good enough job, and he will definitely get his chance soon. Also, Zaccheroni had made two attacking substitutions by the 66th, and was forced to make a third one because of injury to Nagatomo. He put on Yuichi Komano in like-for-like switch. Another attacking substitution might have left the vulnerable in the back, but I think Zaccheroni just wanted to see what the players on the pitch could do.

All in all, it was a disappointing loss to an under strength Uzbekistan side, but not one to worry that much about. Japan had already qualified, and many of the players were fatigued. Maybe we’ll be grouped with them again in the next round and get some revenge.

Some points: This match was good as a tactical experiment, and I’m sure Zaccheroni has a better idea of which players are better together. One thing I noticed was that Inui and Kagawa tended to get in each other’s way. Both are fantastic players, but they both like playing through the center. Inui was put on for Fujimoto as a winger in the attacking midfield trio, but he kept drifting inside and getting too close to Kagawa. Maybe Zaccheroni will think about playing Kagawa on the wing when the two play together from now on, as he plays there very effectively for Dortmund. That way the two will crowd each other less.

The people who were disappointed in Uchida said that Zaccheroni should start picking Hiroki Sakai. Also Hajime Hosogai has been touted as a replacement for the not-so-speedy Endo/Hasebe. It will be interesting to see if these two become more involved in the senior team this year. Maybe Gotoku Sakai as well?

Uzbekistan proved once again that they are in peak physical condition. You would think a team that plays the entire match chasing passes and running the length of the pitch on counter-attacks would tire, but they did not. They were just as sharp and organized in defense in the second half as they were in the first. It was very impressive to watch.

Patience. Japan needs to get used to teams sitting back and conceding possession. Uzbekistan sat back, let Japan pass the ball, and launched dangerous counter-attacks on missed passes. If Japan are patient and do not play difficult passes, they will eventually break teams down.

Here are the highlights.

Next is the draw for the fourth round, which takes place on 9 March at Kuala Lumpur.

Japanese Players in Europe

Shinji Okazaki scored for the third league match in a row, as Stuttgart beat Freiburg 4-1. Okazaki got on the end of an excellent cross from Martin Harnik in the 21st minute to make give Die Schwaben a 2-0 lead. It was his 7th goal of the season. Gotoku Sakai, on loan from Albirex Niigata, retained his place as the starting rightback, playing the full 90 minutes. The win lifted Stuttgart into 8th place as they aim for the European places. Highlights.

Robert Cullen scored his second goal of the season, as Venlo beat Heracles 3-1. Cullen came on in the 75th minute and scored in the 90th to secure the points for Venlo. Maya Yoshida played the entire match. The win brings Venlo to within 2 points of safety. The goal.

Shinji Kagawa returned earlier than expected for Dortmund, as the reigning Bundesliga champions beat Hannover 3-1 to extend their lead at the top of the table to 3 points over Bayern. He started the match and was subbed off in the 87th minute for Ivan Perisic, who promptly scored.

Speaking of Monchengladbach, Yuki Otsu made just his 3rd league appearance for the Foals, who drew 1-1 to Hamburg and dropped to third place. Otsu came on for Igor De Camargo in the 79th minute.

Ryo Miyaichi played the full 90 minutes as Bolton were smacked 3-0 away at Chelsea. The Wanderers were torn apart by a second-half onslaught from the unpredictable Blues.

Finally, Yuto Nagatomo played the full 90 minutes for Inter as they lost to Napoli. It was the 5th straight match in all competitions that the Nerazzurri have failed to score. Since the return of Wesley Sneijder, they have been in terrible form.

(Note: The picture at the top is not from the Freiburg match, but it’s just such a great picture of Sakai and Okazaki together that I had to use it.)

Look forward to the Uzbekistan match tomorrow, or later today depending on where you are!

Japanese Players in Europe

Borussia Dortmund maintained its two-point lead atop the Bundesliga with a 1-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen. The match was settled by a brilliant individual goal by Shinji Kagawa. After a poor start to the season, he has really hit form and, with Robert Lewandowski, has been Dortmund’s best player in the absence of Mario Gotze. He has now scored four times in 2012, leading Dortmund to top of the table and an undefeated record on the year.

Ryo Miyaichi made his English debut, playing the entire second half of Bolton’s 2-1 home defeat to Wigan. He was brilliant throughout and almost salvaged a point for the Wanderers, forcing a great save from Ali Al-Habsi. Manager Owen Coyle singled Ryo out for praise in his post-match interview.

Mike Havenaar played the entire match, as Vitesse lost 3-1 away to Feyenoord. Red-hot Man City loanee John Guidetti had yet another hattrick for Feyenoord who moved up to fourth with the win. Michihiro Yasuda was an unused substitute.

Shinji Okazaki scored once as Stuttgart smacked Hertha Berlin 5-0. The win lifts Stuttgart to 9th in the table. Makoto Hasebe and Wolfsburg are one spot ahead in the standings, winning 3-2 over Freiburg. Captain Hasebe played the entire second half. Meanwhile, Takashi Usami was an unused substitute as Bayern beat relegation-bound Kaiserslautern 2-0.

Both Maya Yoshida and Robert Cullen played as VVV beat Groningen 2-0, to climb further from automatic relegation. Yoshida played the entire match, while Cullen came on as a late substitute. Meanwhile, Yoshiaki Takagi maintained his place in the first team as Utrecht drew 1-1 Ado Den Haag.

Sorry for the long absence readers, I will be posting more regularly now.

Award Winners

Here are the winners of the three Japan Footblog Player of the Year awards.

Shinji Kagawa is the winner of the Japanese Player in Europe award. While he was injured for the second half of last season, he has played well for so far this season and has combined well with the likes of Mario Gotze and Robert Lewandowski. Early in the season, he struggled and was criticized for some of his performances; however the poor early form was probably a result of the entire team playing badly. As Dortmund has climbed up the table over the past two months, Kagawa has been in good form, scoring and creating some excellent goals. While overall his club year was not significantly better than Nagatomo’s, who has recently been outstanding for Inter, Kagawa was at the heart of all things good for the national team. He was vital to the Asian Cup triumph, despite breaking his foot and missing the final. His heroic two goal performance against Qatar was especially memorable. He was also wonderful in the 3-0 win over Korea over the summer and World Cup qualifiers so far.

Note: A reader pointed out to me that Eiji Kawashima had a very good season for his club Lierse, saving them from relegation, and should have been nominated for the award. I agree and have now officially nominated him! Sorry for my initial oversight.

Marcus Tulio Tanaka is the J. League Japanese Player of the Year. While his team Nagoya Grampus did not win the league, they probably should have. They played the best football, and he was the heart of the league’s second-best defense. He was not booked the entire season and also scored six goals. Nagoya will be the team to watch in this year’s Champions League.

Ryo Miyaichi is the Young Player of the year. While Japanese football overall enjoyed a great year, none of the senior players had a particularly incredible year for their club. This was not the case for the young players, with three or four having great years. However Ryo just shades it for me, ahead of Usami and Ibusuki. While he hasn’t played as regularly at Arsenal as we all hoped, he was incredible for Feyenoord in the first half of the year. I don’t want to understate how good Ryo was with Feyenoord–he was amazing. While he was in the Eredivisie, he was arguably the league’s best player and steered Feyenoord from relegation to respectable. All at the age of 18, freshly plucked out of high school. For his time at Feyenoord alone, he wins the award. At Arsenal, he’s played mostly for the reserves and in Carling Cup matches. He spent some time out with injury. Fingers crossed, this year he will emerge as a really special player.