West Bromwich Albion midfielder Junichi Inamoto is confident he can dislodge Takashi Fukunishi and reclaim his place in the starting lineup for Japan's World Cup opener against Australia next month.
Japan midfielder Shunsuke Nakamura passes the ball during a practice match against a local high school at the team's training camp in Fukushima Prefecture.
"I know all about (Australian) players like (Harry) Kewell, (Tim) Cahill, and (Mark) Viduka from playing in the Premiership, so I think that might give me an advantage," Inamoto said at Japan's training camp at the J-Village in Fukushima Prefecture.
Inamoto enjoyed a turnaround in fortunes over the second half of the season at West Brom and nailed down a place in the first team that suffered relegation to the second-tier Championship in England.