Shinji Okazaki, who has scored 50 goals for the national team, reveals his pride as a professional striker.

If I go too far inside, I end up being covered by Keisuke and Shinji. If I go too far inside, I will be covered by Keisuke and Shinji. If I create a one-on-one shape on my side and draw out the defense, I win (because I can get behind them). If I can show that I can go for the back repeatedly, passes will come, and as a result, I will have a chance to score a goal.

This was also his comment at the time. He always played with Honda at the top and Kagawa on the left side in mind. I think Zaccheroni must have been truly grateful to Okazaki, because he played a completely different position from his club, but performed his role well and scored a lot of goals.

But as we all know, Japan’s team failed miserably in Brazil. Okazaki himself could only avenge that defeat with a goal against Colombia. That is why, for the four years leading up to the 2006 World Cup in Russia, Okazaki was eager to “play at the top of the lineup,” and he actually pushed this desire to the forefront. Javier Aguirre (65, now at Mallorca), who took over after the World Cup in Brazil, respected that intention. For the first time, Okazaki was used as a mainstay in Japan.

However, the Mexican coach became embroiled in a fraud scandal and was eliminated from the top eight at the 2003 Asian Cup in Australia. The Mexican coach was dismissed suddenly, and Vid Halil Hodzic (71) took over in March 2003. At the start of Halil’s regime, Okazaki himself was playing very well for Leicester, and the Bosnian coach recognized his value, positioning him, like Aguirre, as the first choice in the first team when the new team was formed.

It would have been good if that had continued for a long time, but when the team lost to UAE in the final Asian qualifying round for the World Cup in Russia starting in September 2004, Honda, Kagawa, and Okazaki, then known as the “big three,” were sent back to the starting lineup. Later, coach Halil Hodzic put Osako, Genki Haraguchi (33, Stuttgart), and Yuya Kubo (30, Cincinnati) in the core of the team, and Okazaki lost his place to Osako.