The striker, a bittersweet topic in Japanese football. We’re always looking for one. The first time at the World Cup – in 1998 – we had a clear interpreter in Masashi Nakayama, who scored the maiden goal for Japan in the competition. Then Akinori Nishizawa, Naohiro Takahara, Shinji Okazaki (twice), Yuya Osako and Daizen Maeda. Besides a few flashes of Okazaki though (against Denmark in 2010 and Colombia in 2014), no fitted the needed of Japan.
Nevertheless, at a wider look, Japan had decent no. 9s, although it’s been a role that often gave head coaches more headaches than satisfactions. The goals have maybe come somewhere else and no one found enough continuity to be remember in such role. Even the historical go-getters in front of goal in recent J.League history – just mentioning the great Hisato Sato or the reliable Yu Kobayashi in recent years – have failed to impose themselves with the national team, let alone in the World Cup.
Now, though, the situation seems different. After a solid debut with Kashima Antlers, Ayase Ueda is confirming that his development is proceeding steadily. Koki Ogawa was almost forgotten, and now he’s actually a option in J1. Shuto Machino keeps ninja-ing his way towards Europe with Shonan Bellmare after making the cut for the World Cup. In all of this, Kyogo Furuhashi still has to get (and properly exploit) a chance with the national team. But… do we need maybe a different type of striker, just as an option?
Can the towering striker be a resource for Japan after many years when that was impossible? The game isn’t going in that direction. Japanese football has never had that kind of striker – if we rule out Mike Havenaar for a year under Alberto Zaccheroni. But now three profiles are lingering on the horizon: all youngsters, with a lot of potential. One is playing in J2, two are ready to get more minutes in J1, but those three options should be thought about for the 2026 cycle.
The Great Chiba Experience
The first one is probably the most expert, but also the only striker playing in J2. Solomon Sakuragawa began his career in 2020, just when COVID-19 hit. The class 2001 striker gradually found more minutes on the pitch, especially with Yoon Jung-hwan, the same head coach who projected Yohei Toyoda towards J.League stardom and the national team. The South Korean manager definitely knew how to exploit Sakuragawa’s physical strengths.
This didn’t provide by any means better results for JEF United Chiba – fourteenth in 2020, eighth in 2021, tenth in 2022 –, but the striker born in Chiba actually improved. Born with Nigerian roots, Sakuragawa actually caught the eye of scouts in Spain even before starting his professional career, getting a two months-trial with Celta de Vigo between January and March 2020. The marks of a great were already there, scoring on his debut against Zweigen Kanazawa in a 2-0 win.
The growth kept going on even last year, when Sakuragawa put together 2000+ on the pitch and 36 games, with seven goals and three assists. It’s clear how his massive strength helped JEF in building up the play even in tough situations – you could always kick the ball up front and hope for something from the striker. But it’s becoming less of a theme and this might be… because actually Sakuragawa left JEF United Chiba this Winter.
And you would think: did he leave for a J1 gig? No. Ok, then he left for good? No. Sakuragawa joined Fagiano Okayama on loan, in one of the strangest moves I’ve ever seen in Japanese football. But that worked pretty well for both Okayama – they lost Mitchell Duke last Winter, they got a younger replacement and they didn’t have to change their way of playing – and for Sakuragawa himself – he’s already scored two goals in just five games.
From Sapporo to Tokyo
Taika Nakashima, instead, plays for a J1 team, but hasn’t seen the proper amount of pitch due to Mihailo Petrovic’s fixating on the same players. Class 2002 and born in Osaka, Nakashima left for Nagasaki and to join Kunimi High School, where he did so well that Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo took note and they bothered to register him as a Special Designated Player already throughout the 2020 season, when Nakashima was just 18 (and he said his goal was winning the Balon d’Or).
He scored four goals in his first pro year in 2021, then six last year, even with the maiden J.League goal to win an away game in Nagoya. He’s a particular profile: he’s more agile than Sakuragawa, but he brings a certain physical dominance to the pitch. He almost single-handledly won the game in Osaka against Gamba, but he needs more time on the pitch. Ogashiwa, Koroki and now both Tučić and Kim Gun-hee are barring him from this opportunity – and we wrote back in September how he would need a loan to finally blossom.
Last but not least, the recent AFC U-20 Asian Cup gave Japan some answers. Kuryu Matsuki is the godsend gift Japan needs. We got a spot for the upcoming FIFA U-20 World Cup in Indonesia. But most of all another no. 9 emerged from the pack: it was Naoki Kumata, who barely scratched the surface of the pro-world with FC Tokyo, but already showed some interesting signs of solidity in Uzbekistan.
Born in Fukushima in 2004, Kumata entered the U-15 of FC Tokyo first and then the U-18 team, being registered as a Special Designated Player of “Type 2” in February 2022. He debuted in the J.League Cup in April against Shonan Bellmare and the club opted to feature him with the first team from 2023. Meanwhile, though, Kumata made waves at the last AFC U-20 Asian Cup, bringing Japan to the semifinals with five goals. Will he find minutes behind Diego Oliveira?
The Future Up Front
Slow down though: it’s very well possible that Moriyasu won’t rely on this kind of player. Japan showed over and over that a “false 9” or a quick striker is the way to go. For multiple reasons: capability of pressing center backs when they’re building up the play, counter attacking style… lack of options in terms of a different kind of striker. But that last reason seems in the past with this kind of alternatives available for the future.
Most of all, you might need that kind of option. Japan knows it really well – in the end, how Belgium won against Japan with a comeback from 2-0 down to 3-2 in 2018? By putting in Fellaini alongside Lukaku and creating a virtual disadvantage in terms of positioning, strength and height, well taken by the Red Devils. It worked against Japan, and the Samurai Blue need to start using this same tool when it’s needed. Kumata, Sakuragawa and Nakashima could answer that necessity.
Let’s not forget how Ayase Ueda is surely the best option right now. He should definitely be the starter for the 2026 cycle – especially if he’ll confirm what’s been done in the first year at Cercle Brugge (we had no doubts, but a confirm is always nice and he might need a bigger stage in 2023-24). But it’s refreshing how Japan is finally capable of producing such players, while in other roles (keeper, left-back) we struggle. Who knows if we’re gonna need some towers in the next World Cup cycle.
J. League Regista 