Japan coach Zico will take the same basic squad that successfully fought through the World Cup qualifiers to the upcoming Confederations Cup in Germany.
Japan forward Atsushi Yanagisawa (left) and midfielder Junichi Inamoto are greeted by fans at
Narita Airport on Thursday as the Japan soccer team arrives home from Bangkok.
Hamburg SV striker Naohiro Takahara and Feyenoord midfielder Shinji Ono were left out of the squad announced Thursday by the Japan Football Association due to injuries but Zico kept faith with all other players who helped Japan clinch a World Cup spot.
The 23-man squad includes European-based midfielders Hidetoshi Nakata and Shunsuke Nakamura, who both missed Wednesday's 2-0 victory over North Korea in Bangkok through suspension.
The result in Asian zone final-round Group B, which came five days after a 1-0 win in Bahrain, assured Japan of its third successive appearance in the World Cup finals.
No replacements have been called up to fill the void left by Takahara and Ono.
In the June 15-29 Confederations Cup, Asian Cup winner Japan plays Mexico in Hanover on June 16 before moving to Frankfurt for a meeting with European champion Greece three days later.
Japan will then wrap up its first-round campaign by taking on World Cup holder Brazil in Cologne on June 22.