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Nakata Hidetoshi (1977- )
Nakata, from Kofu, Yamanashi Prefecture is the most successful and highly
regarded player in Japanese soccer history. Though not always the most
cheerful or talkative of people when in the face of the media glare, his
dedication to his sport is never in question. He is the only player to
have played in all ten of Japan's games at three World Cups. And he was
perhaps the team's most vocal but most accurate critic right up until he
announced his retirement from the game shortly after Japan was eliminated
all too easily from the World Cup in 2006 in Germany.
Nakata was a member of the young Japan team that beat Brazil 1-0 in the 1996
Olympics, a result viewed as something of a miracle at home, and he made
his debut for the senior national team in May 1997 in a friendly game against
perennial Asian rivals South Korea. He played for several
years for Hiratsuka Bellmare in the J-League until the 1998 World Cup
finals, where he attracted the attention of many European teams. He joined
Perugia in the Serie A, the top Italian league, for the record fee for
a Japanese player of $3.5 million.
The famously camera-shy Nakata said at the time, "When I was in
Japan, I just thought about playing and nothing else. I didn't
want to be an idol. I'm going to give everything for Perugia because
I don't want to disappoint anyone. I feel bad because I couldn't
say good-bye properly to my fans, but I'll make up for it by doing
my best in Italy."
Nakata scored two goals on his debut against reigning champions
Juventus and became an overnight success. But Perugia lost the
game and went on to struggle during the season, barely managing
to avoid relegation. But Nakata managed a tally of ten goals for
the season (not bad for a midfielder and nine more than forward
Miura 'Kazu' Kazuyoshi, the first Japanese to play in Italy) and matured into a player
that his team and his country can be proud of. His obvious talents
attracted the attention of clubs all over Europe but Nakata opted
to stay in Italy, moving to title contender AC Roma at the beginning
of 2000 and helping them win the championship. But despite this taste
of success, he was off to Parma the following season, then later to
Bologna and Fiorentina. In 2005 he switched to the English Premier
League, playing a season on loan to Bolton Wanderers.
It was only later in his
career that his notoriously gruff manner and short press conferences
became more relaxed and assured. He was clearly the playmaker
on the Japanese national team and he never seemed to tire of pushing
his countrymen to raise their game. It may have been the never-ending
frustration that this entailed that led to his decision to retire in
July 2006, at the age of 29 and still in his prime. He made 77 appearances
for Japan and scored 11 goals. |
