Japan have named their 23 man squad to travel to South Africa for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
Coach Takeshi Okada has selected a predominently Japan based lineup, with a few key figures from European clubs making up the rest of the squad, including Daisuke Matsui, who plays for Grenoble, in France, who will play an important role for the Japanese in midfield.
Japan will feel there is an opportunity to progress from their group, Group E, which also contains Netherlands, Cameroon and Denmark.
Japan 23 Man Squad – FIFA World Cup 2010
Nr.
Name
DoB
Po
Club
Ht
1
Seigo NARAZAKI
15/04/1976
GK
Nagoya Grampus Eight (JPN)
187
2
Yuki ABE
06/09/1981
MF
Urawa Reds (JPN)
177
3
Yuichi KOMANO
25/07/1981
DF
Jubilo Iwata (JPN)
172
4
Marcus Tulio TANAKA
24/04/1981
DF
Nagoya Grampus Eight (JPN)
185
5
Yuto NAGATOMO
12/09/1986
DF
FC Tokyo (JPN)
170
6
Atsuto UCHIDA
27/03/1988
DF
Kashima Antlers (JPN)
176
7
Yasuhito ENDO
28/01/1980
MF
Gamba Osaka (JPN)
178
8
Daisuke MATSUI
11/05/1981
MF
Grenoble (FRA)
175
9
Shinji OKAZAKI
16/04/1986
FW
Shimizu S-Pulse (JPN)
174
10
Shunsuke NAKAMURA
24/06/1978
MF
Yokohama F Marinos (JPN)
178
11
Keiji TAMADA
11/04/1980
FW
Nagoya Grampus Eight (JPN)
173
12
Kisho YANO
05/04/1984
FW
Albirex Niigata (JPN)
185
13
Daiki IWAMASA
30/01/1982
DF
Kashima Antlers (JPN)
187
14
Kengo NAKAMURA
31/10/1980
MF
Kawasaki Frontale (JPN)
175
15
Yasuyuki KONNO
25/01/1983
DF
FC Tokyo (JPN)
178
16
Yoshito OKUBO
09/06/1982
FW
Vissel Kobe (JPN)
170
17
Makoto HASEBE
18/01/1984
MF
Wolfsburg (GER)
177
18
Keisuke HONDA
13/06/1986
MF
CSKA Moscow (RUS)
182
19
Takayuki MORIMOTO
07/05/1988
FW
Catania (ITA)
180
20
Junichi INAMOTO
18/09/1979
MF
Kawasaki Frontale (JPN)
181
21
Eiji KAWASHIMA
20/03/1983
GK
Kawasaki Frontale (JPN)
185
22
Yuji NAKAZAWA
25/02/1978
DF
Yokohama F Marinos (JPN)
187
23
Yoshikatsu KAWAGUCHI
15/08/1975
GK
Jubilo Iwata (JPN)
180
In This Story: Cameroon
Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa and West Africa.
Cameroon is home to over 250 native languages spoken by nearly 25 million people. Cameroon became a German colony in 1884 known as Kamerun. In 1960, the French-administered part of Cameroon became independent. The southern part of British Cameroons federated with it in 1961 to form the Federal Republic of Cameroon. The federation was abandoned in 1972. The country was renamed the United Republic of Cameroon in 1972 and the Republic of Cameroon in 1984.
The official languages of Cameroon are French and English. Its religious population consists of 70.7% Christians and 24.4% Muslims. It is governed as a Unitary presidential republic and has good relations with the major powers of France, the United Kingdom and China.
The largest cities in population-terms are Douala on the Wouri River, its economic capital and main seaport, Yaoundé, its political capital, and Garoua.
The country is well known for its successful national football team.
Denmark, officially the Kingdom of Denmark, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. The capital is Copenhagen. Denmark proper, consists of a peninsula, Jutland, and an archipelago of 443 islands.
The Kingdom of Denmark comprises Denmark proper and the two autonomous territories in the North Atlantic Ocean: the Faroe Islands and Greenland. Home rule was established in the Faroe Islands in 1948; in Greenland home rule was established in 1979 and further autonomy in 2009.
Denmark has highly developed mixed economy. Denmark became a member of the European Economic Community (now the EU) in 1973, but negotiated certain opt-outs; it retains its own currency, the krone. It is among the founding members of NATO, the Nordic Council, the OECD, OSCE, and the United Nations; it is also part of the Schengen Area. Denmark has close linguistic ties to its Scandinavian neighbours.
FIFA is a non-profit organization which describes itself as an international governing body of association football, fútsal and beach soccer. It is the highest governing body of football.
France is a republic and the largest Western European nation. Through expansion and colonisation in the 17th and 18th centuries France became a great power and still retains territories around the world. It has a seat on the UN security council and is the world’s fourth most wealthy country with a high standard of living and strong cultural identity.
Japan is an island country in East Asia located in the northwest Pacific Ocean. Part of the Pacific Ring of Fire, Japan comprises an archipelago of 6,852 islands covering 377,975 square kilometers (145,937 sq mi); the country’s five main islands, from north to south, are Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu, and Okinawa. Tokyo is Japan’s capital and largest city.
Japan is divided into 47 administrative prefectures and eight traditional regions. The Greater Tokyo Area is the most populous metropolitan area in the world, with more than 37.4 million residents.
Japan is a great power and a member of numerous international organizations, including the United Nations (since 1956), the OECD, and the G7. Japan is a leader in the automotive and electronics industries.
Moscow, on the Moskva River in western Russia, is the nation’s cosmopolitan capital. In its historic core is the Kremlin, a complex that’s home to the president and tsarist treasures in the Armoury. Outside its walls is Red Square, Russia’s symbolic center. It’s home to Lenin’s Mausoleum, the State Historical Museum’s comprehensive collection and St. Basil’s Cathedral, known for its colorful, onion-shaped domes.
The Netherlands, informally Holland, is a country primarily located in Western Europe and partly in the Caribbean, forming the largest constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. In Europe, it consists of 12 provinces that border Germany to the east, Belgium to the south, and the North Sea to the northwest, with maritime borders in the North Sea with those countries and the United Kingdom. In the Caribbean, it consists of three special municipalities: the islands of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba. The country’s official language is Dutch, with West Frisian as a secondary official language in the province of Friesland, and English and Papiamentu as secondary official languages in the Caribbean Netherlands. Dutch Low Saxon and Limburgish are recognised regional languages (spoken in the east and southeast respectively), while Sinte Romani and Yiddish are recognised non-territorial languages.
South Africa is a country on the southernmost tip of the African continent, marked by several distinct ecosystems. Inland safari destination Kruger National Park is populated by big game. The Western Cape offers beaches, lush winelands around Stellenbosch and Paarl, craggy cliffs at the Cape of Good Hope, forest and lagoons along the Garden Route, and the city of Cape Town, beneath flat-topped Table Mountain.
Tokyo, Japan’s busy capital, mixes the ultramodern and the traditional, from neon-lit skyscrapers to historic temples. The opulent Meiji Shinto Shrine is known for its towering gate and surrounding woods. The Imperial Palace sits amid large public gardens.