Japan soccer coach Zico on Monday recalled Fiorentina midfielder Hidetoshi Nakata to a full-strength squad for the Asian champions' upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Iran and Bahrain.
Shinji Ono, who celebrated his 100th Dutch League appearance for Feyenoord with a goal in a 4-1 win over Roda JC on Sunday, also returns, as does Cardiff City's Junichi Inamoto, who was overlooked for Japan's opening Group B game against North Korea last month.
Zico named a total of six European-based players in the 26-man party, including Shunsuke Nakamura and German-based striker Naohiro Takahara, for the Iran clash in Tehran on March 25 and the home game against Bahrain in Saitama five days later.