JAPAN NATIONAL TEAM
1993-1994
Match Worn Shirt
Did you Know?
During 1993 and 1994 Japan team changed three different suppliers. Puma then Adidas and finally Asics. But the very curious thing is that even if there were three different suppliers, the team kept the same style of shirts home and away. So basically there were same shirts branded with three different brands as you can see on side.
Asics
Puma
Adidas
JAPAN NATIONAL TEAM
1993
“Squibb Trophy”
Internazionale vs Japan
Match Worn Shirt
Did you Know?
On February 1993 the Japan Team went to Italy to prepare the following Fifa World Cup 94 qualifying game against Thailand in April. Japan Team played against Juventus F.C. and against Internazionale F.C. for the “Squibb Trophy” which took place at the “Stadio del Mare”in Lecce.
Did you Know?
After having represented Japan at the 1993 U-17 World Championship (where he scored a goal) and at the 1995 U-20 World Championship (where he scored twice), Nakata was part of the Japan squads at the 1996 Olympics, where Japan upset Brazil, and at the 2000 Olympics. His senior national team debut came in May 1997 against South Korea. He was a key member of the Japanese side that qualified for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, scoring five goals in qualification matches and setting up all three Japanese goals in the qualification play-off against Iran. He helped Japan reach the final of the 2001 Confederations Cup but left the national team before the final to join Roma for their final league matches. Nakata played in all four of Japan’s matches at the 2002 FIFA World Cup, co-hosted by South Korea and Japan, scoring the second goal of a 2–0 first round win against Tunisia. At the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Nakata played in all three matches for Japan, losing to Australia and Brazil, and drawing with Croatia. His performance against Croatia earned him a Man of the Match award. After the 2006 FIFA World Cup, on July 3, 2006, Nakata announced his retirement from professional football and the Japanese national team on his personal website “I decided half a year ago that I would retire from the world of professional football … after the World Cup in Germany.” Nakata wrote, “I will never again stand on the pitch as a professional player. But I will never give up football.” In a 2014 interview in TMW Magazine, Nakata confirmed that he had retired at such a young age because he was no longer enjoying football, and wanted instead to see what was going on in the world. Despite Nakata playing every match in Japan’s first three World Cup appearances, he was not selected for the country’s Asian Cup-winning squads in 2000 and 2004. In total, he was capped 77 times for Japan, scoring 11 goals, 9 of which came in official FIFA competitions.
JAPAN NATIONAL TEAM
Fifa World Cup “KOREA & JAPAN 2002”
Japan vs Turkey
Match Worn Shirt
Morioka Ryuzo
Did you Know?
Morioka was capped 38 times for the Japanese national team between 1999 and 2003. He played one game at the 2002 FIFA World Cup. He was also a part of the Japanese 2000 Summer Olympics squad.
JAPAN NATIONAL TEAM
Fifa World Cup “KOREA & JAPAN 2002”
Japan vs Belgium
Match Worn Shirt
Ogasawara Mitsuo
JAPAN NATIONAL TEAM
Confederation Cup “Brasil 2013”
Japan vs Italy
Match Worn Shirt
Konno Yasuyuki
Did you Know?
Italy-Japan was played in Recife at the Arena Pernambuco on June 19th 2013 and it was a game of the Group A of the first “Confederation Cup 2013” stage. Italy defeated Japan 4-3 with Sebastian Giovinco tap-in snatched at minute 86 securing the victors, and Brazil, semi-final places, in one of the greatest games in FIFA Confederations Cup history.
Things to Know:
Yasuyuki Konno was part of the Japanese 2004 Olympic football team, which finished fourth in group B, below group winners Paraguay, Italy and Ghana. He also capped for Japan U-20 team at the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship. On 3 August 2005, he made his debut for the senior national team in an East Asian Cup match against China which finished in a 2-2 draw. He earned a second cap 4 days later, playing the full 90 minutes in a 1-0 win over South Korea. Later that year he came on as a second half substitute in the 1-0 home victory over Iran in a 2006 World Cup qualifier. He played 8 international in 2012, a mixture of friendlies and World Cup qualifiers before being chosen in the Japan squad for the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil the following year. He started all 3 of the Samurai Blue’s games at the tournament which all ended in defeat and saw them finish below Brazil, Italy and Mexico in the Group A standings.
