, sometimes referred to as Yoshi Kawaguchi, is a former Japanese professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played as a

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...

. He is a former

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

of the Japan national team.

Career

Early career

Born in

Fuji Fuji may refer to: Places China * Fuji, Xiangcheng City (付集镇), town in Xiangcheng City, Henan Japan * Mount Fuji, the tallest mountain in Japan * Fuji River * Fuji, Saga, town in Saga Prefecture * Fuji, Shizuoka, city in Shizuoka Prefectur ...

Shizuoka Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Shizuoka Prefecture has a population of 3,637,998 and has a geographic area of . Shizuoka Prefecture borders Kanagawa Prefecture to the east, Yamanashi Prefecture to the northea ...

, Kawaguchi studied at

Shimizu Commercial High School was a co-educational commercial high school located in Shimizu-ku, Shizuoka, Japan. The school was founded in 1921 and was permanently closed on March 31st, 2013. It had a strong soccer program and won the All Japan High School Soccer Tournamen ...

and was a member of the football team there. After finishing high school, he joined the professional football team

Yokohama Marinos is a Japanese professional football club based in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, part of the Greater Tokyo Area. The club competes in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country. Having won the J-League title four times and ...

(later ''Yokohama F. Marinos'').

Portsmouth

Following impressive performances for both club and country, he moved to English club

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

, signing for a club record £1.8m. However, he struggled to adapt to life in the English

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...

, and struggled with the physical side of the First Division, notably in a 3–1 away defeat to

Grimsby Town Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that in the 2022–23 season will compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system, following the victory in ...

. Kawaguchi lost his place to veteran

Dave Beasant David John Beasant (; born 20 March 1959) is an English football coach and former football goalkeeper. As a player, he was a goalkeeper, who notably played top-flight football for Wimbledon, Newcastle United, Chelsea, Southampton and Notting ...

after being held responsible for Portsmouth's 4–1 home defeat to underdogs

Leyton Orient Leyton Orient Football Club is a professional football club based in Leyton, East London, England, who compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. They are the second oldest football club in London to play at a professio ...

in the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

. Despite his poor performances for Pompey he remained something of a cult hero with the fans, on account of his cheerful demeanour, and his insistence that he would work hard to regain his place. After a season of playing reserve team football, he made his final appearance for Portsmouth in the final game of the 2002–03 Football League First Division championship winning season, coming on at half time to a standing ovation in the 5–0 win against

Bradford City Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The team competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system and are currently managed by Mark Hughes. Th ...

Nordsjælland

Despite this brief reappearance, he realised that his future lay elsewhere, and moved on to

Nordsjælland North Zealand, also North Sealand ( da, Nordsjælland), refers to the northern part of the Danish island of Zealand which is not clearly defined but generally covers the area north of Copenhagen. The Danish tourist authorities have recently in ...

of the Danish league.

Júbilo Iwata

Prior to the 2005 Japanese football season, Kawaguchi returned to his home country when he signed with then-perennial title-contenders

Júbilo Iwata is a professional Japanese association football team that currently play in the J2 League. The team name ''Júbilo'' means 'joy' in Spanish and Portuguese. The team's hometown is Iwata, Shizuoka prefecture and they play at Yamaha Stadium. For ...

International career

Early career (1996–2001)

Kawaguchi was called up to the Japanese national team and played in the

Atlanta Olympic games The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

. He kept a

clean sheet In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usuall ...

against

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

in the first game. He played in Japan's first ever

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

game in

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

in a 1–0 defeat to

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

, and throughout the tournament, his stellar performance prevented Japan from being scored more than one, with all three Japanese defeats were just one-goal margin. In 2001, Kawaguchi was Japan's first-choice goalkeeper as the team finished runner-up in the

Confederations Cup The FIFA Confederations Cup was an international association football tournament for men's national teams, held every four years by FIFA. It was contested by the holders of each of the six continental championships (AFC, CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBOL, ...

Captain (2004–2006)

Kawaguchi is a noted penalty stopper, making two saves in the shootout against

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

in the 2004 Asian Cup quarter-final and also saving from

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

Darijo Srna Darijo Srna (; born 1 May 1982) is a Croatian former professional footballer and current director of football of Ukrainian Premier League club Shakhtar Donetsk. During most of his career he played as a right wing-back. He began his career at Haj ...

in the

2006 World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...

. During the

2007 Asian Cup The 2007 AFC Asian Cup was the 14th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The finals were held from 7 to 29 July 2007. For the first time in its hi ...

he was instrumental in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

's quarter-final win against

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

making two saves from

Harry Kewell Harry Kewell (born 22 September 1978) is an Australian association football coach, manager and former player. His most recent role as a club manager was at English National League side Barnet, and he is currently a first team coach at Celtic F ...

and

Lucas Neill Lucas Edward Neill (born 9 March 1978) is an Australian former soccer player. Neill played as a defender, often playing as a centre back as well as a full-back. Neill spent almost 15 years of his career playing in England. He represented Austr ...

in the penalty shootout, thus making him the

Man of the Match In team sport, a player of the match or man of the match or woman of the match award is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chosen from the winn ...

. In August 2006, it was revealed that he would wear the captain's armband, as new Japan manager

Ivica Osim Ivan Osim (6 May 1941 – 1 May 2022), best known as Ivica Osim, was a Bosnian professional footballer and football manager. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest Bosnian football managers of all time and as one of the most influential foo ...

believed that former captain

Tsuneyasu Miyamoto is a former Japanese football coach and former player who last coached Gamba Osaka. He played for Japan national team. A central defender, Miyamoto went on to make 71 international appearances and led the Japan national team in the 2002 and ...

was not getting enough playing time at his domestic club,

Gamba Osaka is a Japanese professional football club based in Suita, Osaka Prefecture. The club plays in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country. The club's name ''Gamba'' comes from the Japanese , meaning "to do your best" or "to st ...

Marginal role (2008–2010)

Kawaguchi is his country's most-capped goalkeeper and overall third most-capped player with 116 caps for Japan, six behind second-placed

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 Brazili ...

with 122 caps, but an injury in 2008 had since sidelined him from action. Long-time rival

Seigo Narazaki is a Japanese former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He played for Japan national team. Club career After graduating from Nara Ikuei High School in 1995, Narazaki joined J1 League side Yokohama Flügels. In August 1995, reg ...

had since been playing as first-choice keeper for Japan. A broken leg sustained in a J1 League clash against

Kyoto Sanga FC is a Japanese professional football club based in Kyoto. "Sanga" comes from the Sanskrit word ''sangha'', a term meaning "group" or "club" and often used to denote the Buddhist priesthood, associating the club with Kyoto's many Buddhist templ ...

appeared to have sidelined him for the rest of the season thus ruling him out of the

2010 World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

. However, after making a full and quick recovery Japanese head coach

Takeshi Okada is a Japanese former football player and manager. He played for and managed the Japan national team. Club career Okada was born in Osaka on August 25, 1956. After graduating from Waseda University, he joined Japan Soccer League (JSL) club Fur ...

decided to include him in the final squad announced on 10 May 2010. Kawaguchi was one of two Japanese players (the other being Seigo Narazaki) to be named for their national team's 4th consecutive World Cup. Despite his period of inactivity and having fallen to third in the pecking order, Okada selected him in the hope that his leadership and experience would aid the team's progress. Kawaguchi was appointed captain of the national team during team training on 21 May 2010.Captain Kawaguchi
/ref> Kawaguchi was not picked to play for the national team under coach

Alberto Zaccheroni Alberto Zaccheroni (; born 1 April 1953) is an Italian football manager, formerly in charge of the United Arab Emirates and Japan national football teams. He has managed a number of top clubs in Serie A, the high point of his career being his s ...

, and with youngster

Eiji Kawashima is a Japanese professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Ligue 1 club Strasbourg. Kawashima played in Japan for Omiya Ardija, Nagoya Grampus Eight and Kawasaki Frontale before joining Lierse S.K. in Belgium in 2010. He then pla ...

impressing in Japan's 2011 Asian Cup success, the Fuji-shi born custodian's international career was effectively over.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Yokohama F. Marinos *

J1 League The , known as the for sponsorship reasons, is the top level of the system. Founded in 1992, it is one of the most successful leagues in Asian club football. Contested by 18 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the J ...

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

Portsmouth *

Football League First Division The Football League First Division was a division of the Football League in England from 1888 until 2004. It was the top division in the English football league system from the season 1888–89 until 1991–92, a century in which the First ...

: 2002–03 Japan *

AFC Asian Cup The AFC Asian Cup is the primary association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), determining the continental champion of Asia. It is the second oldest cont ...

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

* AFC-OFC Challenge Cup:

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

Afro-Asian Cup of Nations The Afro-Asian Cup of Nations, also called the AFC Asia/Africa Challenge Cup, was an intercontinental football competition endorsed by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), contested between re ...

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

Individual *

J.League Rookie of the Year The J.League Best Young Player (formerly known as the "J.League Rookie of the Year" from 1993 to 2019) is awarded by the J.League to the most outstanding rookie of the season. To be considered a rookie, a player must be in his first professional y ...

* The Best 11:

* AFC Best Player of the Month: June 2001 * Asian Cup All-Star Team:

J.League Best XI The J.League Best XI is an acknowledgement of the best eleven players in J.League. J1 League (1993–present) Multiple appearances Appearances by club Appearances by country * Only in two occasions there was a full-Japanese Best XI (20 ...

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

* J.League Fair Play Award:

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

* J.League 20th Anniversary Team

References

External links

* *
Japan National Football Team Database
*
Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi
at

SC Sagamihara is a Japanese association football club based in Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture. They currently play in the third tier of Japanese football J3 League. History In 2011 they joined Division 2 of the Kanto Regional League after three years of con ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kawaguchi, Yoshikatsu 1975 births Living people Association football people from Shizuoka Prefecture Japanese footballers Japan international footballers J1 League players J2 League players J3 League players English Football League players Danish Superliga players Yokohama F. Marinos players Portsmouth F.C. players FC Nordsjælland players Júbilo Iwata players FC Gifu players SC Sagamihara players Olympic footballers of Japan Footballers at the 1996 Summer Olympics 1998 FIFA World Cup players 1999 Copa América players 2000 AFC Asian Cup players 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup players 2002 FIFA World Cup players 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup players 2004 AFC Asian Cup players 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup players 2006 FIFA World Cup players 2007 AFC Asian Cup players 2010 FIFA World Cup players AFC Asian Cup-winning players Japanese expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in England Expatriate men's footballers in Denmark Japanese expatriate sportspeople in England Japanese expatriate sportspeople in Denmark Association football goalkeepers FIFA Century Club