Now a key player for Japan, Junya Ito is one of the first names on the team sheet. And he will have to remain on song if the Samurai Blues are to survive arguably one of the toughest groups and reach the knockout stages of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.
He may have struggled for game time when coach Hajime Moriyasu first took over, but Ito soon warmed up when it came to the Asian qualifying rounds. In fact, red hot is the only way to describe his final-round performance, with four goals and two assists. Having also won a penalty, he had a hand in seven goals in all, more than half Japan’s total.
Even so, his road to the big time was more leisurely than fast track. He played football in high school and college, but his big break came when spotted by a scout. Next came a move to Ventforet Kofu, famous for an unlikely Emperor’s Cup victory in Japan. Hard work and resilience would then see him rise up the ranks to his present stellar status.
This season, he moved to Stade de Reims in the French Ligue 1, where he quickly became the team’s beating heart. Ito joined FIFA to share his thoughts on the World Cup and his hopes for the tournament.
What’s your feeling on the Asian qualifiers, which proved harder than expected?
We lost our opener in the final Asian qualifying round, then Saudi Arabia beat us too, so we were at rock bottom. Despite that, I think we managed to book our World Cup place because we refused to give up and kept fighting right to the end.
This will be your first World Cup, so what are your feelings about the tournament?
Well, come what may, I want to be in good shape for the competition. Top shape in fact, to get results to match.
Most footballers describe playing in the World Cup as their dream. How do you feel going into the tournament?
Naturally, as footballers, we all dream of the World Cup and would like to experience it at least once in our careers.
And over half the world will be watching. Having the chance to be part of it is huge.
Japan hosted the World Cup in 2002. You were very young
at the time, but do you
remember any of it?
To be honest, I was too small to remember much, but I definitely knew the World Cup was on and understood it was a huge tournament.
What sticks out most in
your memory from previous World Cups?
The free-kick that [Keisuke] Honda scored against Denmark in South Africa 2010. That, for me, was amazing and unforgettable.
Japan aside, what other World Cup memories come to mind?
Good question. I remember Zidane’s headbutt in the final in Germany 2006 like it was yesterday.
Could you describe your role
in the team?
Well, Maya Yoshida is a leader, and [Takumi] Minamino, for example, is a goal-getter. I see my own role as mainly providing assists, so I will go all out to do that.
Finally, how would you assess your group-stage opponents?
Well, everyone knows how strong Spain are and I think Germany will have the edge over us in terms of possession and ball time. But I think that will give us more room to be defensive, so we should focus on hard running and trying to score on the counter. Personally, counter-attacks are what I enjoy, so I hope I can bring my ‘A’ game there. As a team, we’re targeting the quarter-finals as a minimum so either way, we’re going to have to beat Spain
and Germany.
