Japan manager Philippe Troussier on Monday called up 26 players for the Hassan II International Cup (June 4-6 in Morocco), including the surprise pick of Vissel Kobe defender Keiji Kaimoto in place of injured Jubilo Iwata defender Toshihiro Hattori.
AS Roma midfielder Hidetoshi Nakata, Venezia midfielder Hiroshi Nanami and Valladolid striker Shoji Jo are also on the squad along with the Cerezo Osaka duo of forward Akinori Nishizawa and midfielder Hiroaki Morishima, who have inspired their club's race for the J. League title. Veteran striker Kazu Miura of Kyoto Purple Sanga returned to the squad after missing the April 26 South Korea game, while Sanfrecce Hiroshima forward Tatsuhiko Kubo, Marinos midfielder Yoshiharu Ueno and JEF United Ichihara midfielder Eisuke Nakanishi make their first appearance since last September's Iran game.
The team will leave for Morocco on May 31 and play world champion France on June 4 and either Jamaica or Morocco on June 6 in Casablanca.
Japan will then host Slovakia on June 11 and Bolivia on June 18 in the Kirin Cup. That squad will be named on June 8. Troussier has recently been on the verge of dismissal from the post and the Japan Football Association will evaluate his performance through these four matches to decide whether to keep the Frenchman after June.
But Troussier showed determination to pursue his job until the end of October, saying "My contract with the JFA has been automatically extended to the end of October by Japan qualifying for the Sydney Olympics and the Asian Cup, which is included in a clause of my contract. I've decided to pursue the contract that I signed.
"The upcoming four games are important for us to prepare for the Olympics (in September) and the Asian Cup (in October)," said Troussier.