<figure id="attachment_375295" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-375295" style="width: 1024px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="45fe2460"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/06/c8967c86c79341efe458d2d793cc4fbd.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-375295" class="wp-caption-text">Kubo started on the right wing for Sociedad in a friendly match against Tokyo V on March 29. Kubo played until the third minute of the second half, and excited the crowd at the National Stadium, where he stood for the first time.</figcaption></figure>
 The U-23 national soccer team, which is hoping to win a medal at the upcoming Paris Olympics on July 25 for the first time in 56 years, will not be able to call up its best squad for the games.
 Kubo Takefusa, 22, of Spain&#8217;s Real Sociedad, who cried hysterically in public immediately after losing to Mexico in the third-place playoff in Tokyo in 2009 and is now eager for &#8220;revenge&#8221; for that disappointment, has also been told that his participation in the Paris Olympics is hopeless. A JFA official said, &#8220;It was not like that at the last Tokyo games.
 The JFA official said, &#8220;This was not the case at the previous Tokyo games, but when we went to the clubs to negotiate player call-ups for the Paris Olympics, they almost turned us down and would not listen to us about sending players for the Games. One of the club officials told me, &#8216;The Olympics are not going to be held in your country, are they? He said, &#8220;The Olympics are not going to be held in your country, are they?
 The European clubs are looking down on us, saying, &#8220;Since we are not the host country of the Olympics, we don&#8217;t want our important players to be called up for the Japanese national team.
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 Why is there such a difference in &#8220;enthusiasm&#8221; for the Olympics between Japanese and European clubs? A reporter for an evening newspaper revealed, &#8220;First of all, there are the five major European soccer leagues.
 First of all, the five major European soccer leagues (England, Spain, Germany, France, and Italy) do not consider the Olympics to be of national importance. The Olympics are not an &#8220;A-match day&#8221; set by FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association), which allows national teams to call up players on a priority basis, so all clubs are reluctant to send players to countries that will be participating in the Olympics.
 For example, the French national team, the host country, is normally in the flow of aiming for the gold medal, but although they are eager to call up their ace FW Mbappe (25) in the overage bracket, he is likely not to participate this time because of his pending transfer from Paris Saint-Germain to Real Madrid. In addition, the European Championships (Germany, June 14-July 14) will be held before the Olympics this year, and players representing European countries will give priority to that event.
 In addition, late July, when the Olympics are held, usually coincides with the start of the new season for European clubs, and this is a very important time for newly transferred players in particular to establish themselves with their new clubs. If they leave their club there to participate in the Olympics, they may not be able to compete when they return to their club. Some players who have not established themselves at their clubs want to avoid competing. When the transfer of players from Japan to Europe started to become more active, and when Hidetoshi Nakata and Shunsuke Nakamura, who were major players in the Japanese national team, moved to European clubs, they were asked, &#8220;Do they even play soccer in Asia? They were looked down upon so much that people wondered if soccer existed in Asia. Now, people don&#8217;t say that so openly, but that view still exists.
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<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" Kubo in tears after missing out on a medal at the Tokyo Olympics"></div>
<figure id="attachment_375297" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-375297" style="width: 940px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="d47614a7"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2024/06/d295556259691052e84cdc33e01dca1b.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-375297" class="wp-caption-text">Ken Kubo (front right) sobs after losing to Mexico and missing out on the bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics in 2009.</figcaption></figure>
 This is a big deal for the U-23 team, which had been aiming for its first medal since the 1968 Mexico Olympics after making its eighth consecutive appearance at the Games. Kubo has been named in Moriyasu Japan&#8217;s squad for next month&#8217;s World Cup second-round Asian qualifiers (Myanmar on May 6 and Syria on May 11).
 The plan was to have the U-23s win the Asian Cup in early May and qualify for the Olympics, and then form the strongest possible squad for the Olympics, including Kubo. The national team&#8217;s coach, Tsuyoshi Oiwa, said, &#8220;I have heard about Kubo Takefusa&#8217;s feelings toward Paris. Now we just need to see if his club will allow him to participate in the tournament. Since Kubo had expressed a positive attitude toward participation, the plan must have been to invite Kubo and other European players he wanted to call upon to solidify the team during the tour to the United States in early June, the last training match before the Olympics.
 However, Kubo was included in the A team for the World Cup second-round qualifiers announced on May 24, and with an away game against Myanmar on June 6 and a match against Syria in Hiroshima on June 11, it is difficult for Kubo to participate in the Paris Olympics if he cannot play in the Olympic training matches, according to common sense.
 Since the national teams of each country cannot preferentially call up players for the Olympics, a rule was established that allows three players over the age of 23 to be called up as &#8220;overage (OA) quota players. The above-mentioned reporter continued.
 There were OA candidates for the Paris games, including defender Itakura Koh (Borussia MG, Germany), Shogo Taniguchi (Al Rayyan, Qatar), and midfielder Takumi Minamino (Monaco, France), but they were called up to the A team for the World Cup second round qualifiers at a press conference on May 24. Under the circumstances, it would be delicate for coach Oiwa to call up the OA quota he hopes for.&#8221;
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 Japan national team coach Hajime Moriyasu, who attended the press conference on May 24, also stated, &#8220;We are having difficulty in calling up the Olympic team because we cannot call up players on a priority basis.
 The prestigious English Premier League clubs Liverpool and Manchester United are making investigations to acquire Kubo. All the big clubs are serious.
 There are many hurdles to overcome, such as the transfer fee, which is said to exceed 10 billion yen, and the fact that Kubo would need permission from Real Madrid, the former owner of the club, if he were to move. The JFA also mentioned that they are &#8216;aware&#8217; that Kubo has been offered a transfer,&#8221; said a reporter from an evening newspaper.
 On May 28, Kubo spoke to the press after arriving in Japan for the May 29 friendly between Real Sociedad and Tokyo V. On May 28, Kubo spoke to the press and revealed that he was not sure if he would be able to participate in the Olympics.
 Kubo also told the press that he will not be able to participate in the Olympics. There is no talk that I really wanted to go. I feel that I agree with the club that it would be difficult for me to participate.
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 Kubo himself hopes to remain at Real Sociedad next season, but there have been times when he has been left out of the squad at the critical stage of the league season, even though he is not in poor condition. It is likely that he is in a position where he will not be a mainstay next season, and talks of a loan transfer are likely to be underway.
 Japanese soccer fans may be saddened to hear that Kubo will not be able to participate in the Olympics, not because he wants to, but because of a number of &#8220;circumstances. However, if Japan is able to win a medal at the Olympics without being able to invite the European team it would like to invite, the Japanese soccer world will not be subjected to such humiliating words in the future.

 Kyodo News

 The Olympic team, aiming to win its first medal in 56 years at the Paris Olympics, has decided not to call up Kubo Takefusa. Furthermore, the team is having difficulty in recruiting other European players. Behind this was a humiliating comment from a European club.

Kubo Takefusa&#8217;s call-up was abandoned&#8230; &#8220;Humiliating Words&#8221; from European Clubs Behind the Crisis of Wiping Out the Olympic Soccer Team&#8217;s &#8220;Call-up of European Teams&#8221;.

Kubo Takefusa’s call-up was abandoned… “Humiliating Words” from European Clubs Behind the Crisis of Wiping Out the Olympic Soccer Team’s “Call-up of European Teams”.

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