Japan captain Makoto Hasebe has admitted he "could not believe" the match-fixing allegations being leveled at national team coach Javier Aguirre, but said Wednesday the players must all pull in the same direction ahead of the Asian Cup.
"We all have to move in the same direction, make no mistake about that," Hasebe told reporters after arriving back in Japan from doing charity work in Indonesia.
"I am one of the senior players in the team and want to talk to everyone about this."
Asked his state of mind when he found out about the match-fixing allegations though news reports, the Eintracht Frankfurt midfielder said: "I couldn't believe it."
Hasebe said the Japan Football Association had contacted him and said the situation would be explained on Monday, when the players gather for the start of a training camp in Chiba Prefecture.
"There are a lot of things (about the allegations) that I know only from the media. I haven't really got much to say about it until I have heard the story (from the JFA)," he said.