March 31, 2004
Japan national coach Zico felt the need for the world football governing body FIFA to analyze the time allowed by clubs to release their players ahead of international matches
Japan's preparations for their FIFA World Cup 2006 qualifying match against Singapore have been affected by the late arrival of several overseas players including team captain Hidetoshi Nakata.
While most of the squad had touched down in Singapore on Sunday evening to prepare for the match, midfielders Shinji Ono (Feyenoord - Holland) & Junichi Inamoto (Fulham - England) had only arrived in Singapore on Monday. Worse was the late arrival of midfielder Hidetoshi Nakata (Bologna - Italy), Shunsuke Nakamura (Reggina - Italy) & striker Naohiro Takahara (Hamburg - Germany).
Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Zico lamented the lack of time that he had to get his team ready for the match.
He felt as a result of several of players arriving late, it was not an ideal preparation as it left only 24 hours for the players to gel & it was not the 1st time it had happened so he was pleased with it. He know Japan has a strong team with very good players but it does not mean they can go without practice & training because no team is perfect.
While their preparations may not have been ideal, Zico is confident that his side can overcome the humid conditions in the island republic and get a good result against Singapore.
He is not worried about the temperature difference between Singapore & Japan. His players have prepared well to play in these conditions & they should have the strength & shape to cope with it.
At the same time, Zico is also not perturbed by the unfamiliar chocolate-box confines of the 6,000-capacity Jalan Besar Stadium. He felt the size of the stadium does not matter & as long as the size of the filed meets FIFA regulations, there should be no problem for any team including Japan.
Also Zico want everybody to know Japan will respect Singapore but Japan is in Singapore to win the match & qualify for the World Cup.