Inamoto remains positive, optimistic
July 4, 2009: You have to take your hat off to Junichi Inamoto.
He’s just joined his seventh club in Europe – Stade Rennais – and still has the ambition to play in the World Cup in South Africa next summer.
Despite his problems over the years, and his struggle for recognition and a regular first-team place, Inamoto can be regarded as a success story in that he has shown tremendous mental strength and determination to keep going in Europe when it would have been much easier to come home to Japan; to the comforts of the J.League, to the easy money and to the appreciative support of the fans – and media -- around the country.
Instead he has stuck it out, and has always managed to find a decent club to play for when his agent has started putting his name about.
At Rennes, of course, he is well known by the former Gamba manager Frederic Antonetti, so he does not have anything to prove to him. He will even be wearing the familiar No. 6 shirt with the Red and Blacks.
But what I think Inamoto will find difficult – and new – is the French language and lifestyle. It will be much tougher to adapt to everyday life in France than it was in England, Turkey or Germany, and in this respect he has a Japanese “sensei” in Daisuke Matsui, now at Grenoble after his move to Saint-Etienne did not work out at all.
Matsui really threw himself into the French culture, going out with teammates in the evenings to build up his language skills rather than sitting at home playing computer games from Japan. This has been a key to Matsui’s survival in France, and shows that it takes a lot more than football skills alone to make an impression in Europe.
With a two-year contract at Rennes, Ina has the time to settle, adjust and to enjoy his football, and if he can force his way into the starting line-up this season then surely Takeshi Okada will not give up on him, especially as he needs a bit more muscle and power through the middle.
ends
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Comments
Good luck to Junichi Inamoto! He’s shown time and again that he’s a highly adaptable player during his stints in England, Turkey and Germany. I’m hoping Ina would be a success at Rennes. He gets to work with a manager who knows him well, having played at Gamba under him.
As for Yoshito Okubo, what a shame! He’s basically run back to Vissel Kobe after just six months in Bundesliga. It’s understandable he couldn’t break into their starting line-up, considering when he joined them Wolfsburg were in run up to their championship title. What’s more, they already had Grafite and Dzeko in their forward line. What troubles me though is that he could have had a fresh start next season under a new manager. I mean, who wouldn’t want to get a chance to play for the reigning Bundesliga champions and show what he could achieve at the high level? By going back to the safety and the comfort of his old club in J League Okubo has shown to the world his lack of willingness as a striker. Remember Ina’s time at Arsenal? He was playing for their reserves, for Christ sakes, but kept his head up and persevered, World Cup or not. In my opinion, I’m sorry but Okubo ain’t no Blue Samurai and Takeshi Okada should drop him immediately, and stick with Okazaki, or promote Catania’s Morimoto instead.
By the way, did anyone hear the rumour about Roberto Mancini (!) replacing Okada as Japan manager? Is there any substance to this? It’s been reported in Goal.com, yet strangely enough no Japanese newspaper has mentioned this at all. What’s going on at the JFA? Are they seriously after him for World Cup?
Posted by: bluesamurai | 07/10/2009 at 02:05 PM