Yuji Nakazawa

is a Japanese football player who currently plays for J. League side Yokohama F. Marinos. He is a centre back. He is captain of both Yokohama F. Marinos and the Japan national football team. His nickname is "Bomber" because of his distinctive hairstyle. Nakazawa is one of only four Japanese players to reach 100 caps for his country.

Career

Nakazawa started playing football for his home country. He played for Yoshikawa Higashi Junior High School and Misato Technology High School, but attracted no scouts' eyes. Determined to be a pro, he left for Brazil to improve his football skills and trained with América Mineiro. During his time there, he won the Campeonato Mineiro in the junior category and played a key role in coach Ricardo Drubscky's squad.

After a year, he returned to Japan and joined Verdy Kawasaki in 1998 as a trainee, which meant he received no compensation. He impressed the club enough to win a full professional contract the following year.

His first J. League appearance came on March 13, 1999 against Cerezo Osaka at Todoroki Athletics Stadium. He scored his first league goal on April 10, 1999 against Nagoya Grampus Eight also at Todoroki. That year, he received the J-League Young Player of the Year award and was selected for the J-League Team of the Year.

Philippe Troussier called him up for Japan's national team. Nakazawa played in Olympic qualifiers as well as the finals in Sydney. Troussier promoted him to a full international....
Read More