Naoki Matsuda
was a Japanese professional footballer who played as a central defender for the Japan national team. Club career Matsuda was born in Kiryu on 14 March 1977. After graduating from high school, he joined Yokohama Marinos (later ''Yokohama F. Marinos'') in 1995. From first season, he became a regular player and played as right back of three defence with Japan national team players Masami Ihara and Norio Omura. The club won the champions in 1995 J1 League. In 2000s, he mainly played as centre back with Yuji Nakazawa or Yuzo Kurihara, also played defensive midfielder. The club won the champions 2001 J.League Cup, 2003 and 2004 J1 League. Although he played as central player of Marinos in 16 seasons, he was sacked end of 2010 season. Matsuda moved to Japan Football League club Matsumoto Yamaga FC in 2011. Although he played for qualify for promote to J2 League, in 2 August, he collapsed for myocardial infarction during training. On 4 August, he died at the age of 34. His last m ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Japan National Football Team
The , nicknamed the , represents Japan in men's international Association football, football. It is controlled by the Japan Football Association (JFA), the governing body for football in Japan. Japan was not a major football force until the end of the 1980s, with a small and amateur team. For a long time in Japan, football was a less popular sport than Baseball in Japan, baseball and sumo. Since the 1990s, when Japanese football became fully professionalized, Japan has emerged as one of the most successful teams in Asia; they have qualified for the last seven FIFA World Cups with knockout stage appearances in 2002 FIFA World Cup, 2002, 2010 FIFA World Cup, 2010, 2018 FIFA World Cup, 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cup, 2022, and won the AFC Asian Cup a record four times, in 1992 AFC Asian Cup, 1992, 2000 AFC Asian Cup, 2000, 2004 AFC Asian Cup, 2004 and 2011 AFC Asian Cup, 2011. The team also finished second in the 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup and the 2019 AFC Asian Cup. Japan remains ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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2001 J
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. In conventions of sign where zero is considered neither positive nor negative, 1 is the first and smallest positive integer. It is also sometimes considered the first of the infinite sequence of natural numbers, followed by 2, although by other definitions 1 is the second natural number, following 0. The fundamental mathematical property of 1 is to be a multiplicative identity, meaning that any number multiplied by 1 equals the same number. Most if not all properties of 1 can be deduced from this. In advanced mathematics, a multiplicative identity is often denoted 1, even if it is not a number. 1 is by convention not considered a prime number; this was not universally accepted until the mid-20th century. Additionally, 1 is the s ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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J2 League
The or simply J2 is the second division of the and the second level of the Japanese association football league system. The top tier is represented by the J1 League. It (along with the rest of the J.League) is currently sponsored by Meiji Yasuda Life and it is thus officially known as the . Until the 2014 season it was named the J.League Division 2. Second-tier club football has existed in Japan since 1972; however, it was only professionalized during the 1999 season with ten clubs. The league took one relegating club from the top division and nine clubs from the second-tier semi-professional former Japan Football League to create the J2 League. The remaining seven clubs in the Japan Football League, the newly formed Yokohama FC, and one promoting club from the Regional Leagues, formed the nine-club Japan Football League, then the third tier of Japanese football. The third tier is now represented by the J3 League. History Phases of Japanese second-tier association football ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Japan Football League
The also known as simply the JFL is the 4th tier of the Japanese association football league system, positioned beneath the three divisions of the J.League. The league features fully professional teams that hold J.League associate membership among its ranks. Relationship and position of J. League and Japan Football League (JFL) According to the official document published in December 2013 when the J3 League was established, the J3 League was the 3rd level of the J.League. The J.League and non-J.League amateur leagues have different hierarchical structures, and the J3 League was ranked on the same level as the JFL. In addition, the JFL itself has the same recognition in the material showing the league composition on the official website. Therefore, the JFL is treated as equal to J3 in theory, but in practice it is considered equivalent to a 4th division. History The Japan Football League started from the 1999 season when the second division of J.League (J2) was also born. Un ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Yuzo Kurihara
is a Japanese former football player who last played for Yokohama F. Marinos. He played for Japan national team. Club career Kurihara was born in Yokohama on 18 September 1983. He joined J1 League club Yokohama F. Marinos from youth team in 2002. Although he debuted as center back in 2003, he could not play many matches behind Japan national team player Naoki Matsuda and Yuji Nakazawa. In 2006, he became a regular player as stopper of three backs defense with Matsuda and Nakazawa. From 2007, he played many matches as center back with Nakazawa of four backs defense. After that, he played many matches as center back for a long time of four backs or three backs defense. In 2013, Marinos won the 2nd place in J1 League and the champions in Emperor's Cup. However his opportunity to play decreased from 2015. He retired from football at the end of the 2019 season. National team career In November 2003, Kurihara was selected Japan U-20 national team for 2003 World Youth Championship. ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Yuji Nakazawa
is a Japanese former professional footballer who played as a centre back for J1 League side Tokyo Verdy and Yokohama F. Marinos. He was the formerly the captain of the Japan national team. His nickname is "Bomber" because of his distinctive hairstyle. Nakazawa is one of only seven Japanese players to reach 100 caps for his country. Club career Nakazawa started playing football for his home country. He played for Yoshikawa Higashi Junior High School and Misato Technology High School, but attracted no scouts' eyes. Determined to be a pro, he left for Brazil to improve his football skills and trained with América Mineiro. During his time there, he won the Campeonato Mineiro in the junior category and played a key role in coach Ricardo Drubscky's squad. After a year, he returned to Japan and joined Verdy Kawasaki (later ''Tokyo Verdy'') in 1998 as a trainee, which meant he received no compensation. He impressed the club enough to win a full professional contract the following ye ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Norio Omura
is a Japanese former football player and manager. He played for the Japan national team from 1995 to 1998. Club career Omura was born in Matsue, Japan on September 6, 1969. After graduating from Juntendo University, he joined Yokohama Marinos (later ''Yokohama F. Marinos'') in 1992. In the 1990s, he played center-back with Japan national team player Masami Ihara. The club won the champions 1992 Emperor's Cup. In Asia, the club won the 1992–93 Asian Cup Winners' Cup and in 1995 the J1 League. In 2000s, the club won second place at the 2000 J1 League and the champions at the 2001 J.League Cup. He moved to Vegalta Sendai in 2002 and Sanfrecce Hiroshima in 2004. In 2006, his opportunity to play decreased and he moved to J2 League club Yokohama FC in August 2006. In 2008, he moved to Japan Football League club Gainare Tottori. He retired end of 2008 season. International career On May 21, 1995, Omura debuted for the Japan national team against Scotland. In 1996, he became a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Masami Ihara
is a Japanese former professional football player and manager. He played for Japan national team. A defender, Ihara was captain of the Japan national team for more than a decade in the 1990s, together with striker Kazuyoshi Miura and Brazilian-born midfielder Ruy Ramos. Ihara's long standing record of 122 national team appearances was bested by Yasuhito Endo on October 16, 2012 Club career Ihara was rarely out of the spotlight in the emerging J1 League throughout the 1990s. He spent most of his career with Yokohama F. Marinos and formed a key defensive partnership with the flamboyant Tsuyoshi Kitazawa at club level. After graduating from University of Tsukuba, he joined Nissan Motors (later ''Yokohama Marinos'') and rapidly rose through the Marinos youth ranks to become a key player. The long-serving Ihara was so important to his club that he was nicknamed ''Mister Marinos'' by many Japanese fans. He formed the backbone of the club and also helped to bring on talented youngs ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Central Defender
In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either side to their left and right, but can be played in threes with or without full-backs. Defenders fall into four main categories: centre-back, sweeper, full-back, and wing-back. The centre-back and full-back positions are essential in most modern formations. The sweeper and wing-back roles are more specialised for certain formations dependent on the manager's style of play and tactics. Centre-backs are usually tall and positioned for their ability to win duels in the air. Centre-back The centre-back (also known as a central defender or centre-half, as the modern role of the centre-back arose from the centre-half position) defends in the area directly in front of the goal and tries to prevent opposing players, particularly centre-forwards ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Association Football
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is to score more goals than the opposition by moving the ball beyond the goal line into a rectangular framed goal defended by the opposing side. Traditionally, the game has been played over two 45 minute halves, for a total match time of 90 minutes. With an estimated 250 million players active in over 200 countries, it is considered the world's most popular sport. The game of association football is played in accordance with the Laws of the Game, a set of rules that has been in effect since 1863 with the International Football Association Board (IFAB) maintaining them since 1886. The game is played with a football that is in circumference. The two teams compete to get the ball into the other team's goal (between the posts and under t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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2004 AFC Asian Cup
The 2004 AFC Asian Cup was the 13th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international association football, football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). It was held from 17 July to 7 August 2004 in China. The defending champions Japan national football team, Japan defeated China national football team, China in the 2004 AFC Asian Cup Final, final in Beijing. The tournament was marked by Saudi Arabia national football team, Saudi Arabia's unexpected failure to even make it out of the first round; a surprisingly good performance by Bahrain national football team, Bahrain, which finished in fourth place; Jordan national football team, Jordan, which reached the quarterfinals in its first appearance and Indonesia national football team, Indonesia, which gained their historical first Asian Cup win against Qatar national football team, Qatar. The final match between China and Japan was marked by post-match rioting by China, Chinese fans near the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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2000 AFC Asian Cup
The 2000 AFC Asian Cup was the 12th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international association football, football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The finals were held in Lebanon between 12 and 29 October 2000. Japan national football team, Japan defeated defending champion Saudi Arabia national football team, Saudi Arabia in the final match in Beirut. Qualification 42 teams participated in a preliminary tournament. It was divided into 10 groups and the first-placed team of each group thus qualified. A total of 84 games were held, starting with the Oman national football team, Oman versus Kyrgyzstan national football team, Kyrgyzstan game on 3 August 1999. The 12 qualifying teams were: Notes: :1 Bold indicates champion for that year :2 ''Italic'' indicates host Stadiums Squads Tournament summary Lebanon participated in the country's first ever football competition in the history as host, but began disappointingly, losing ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |