Japan take no chances for Syria clash
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Japan coach Vahid Halilhodzic left little to chance for next week's World Cup qualifier against Syria by naming European stars Keisuke Honda and Shinji Kagawa among a strong squad.
Salzburg striker Takumi Minamino also earned his first call-up for the Blue Samurai under the Franco-Bosnian for the October 8 game in neutral Oman. Japan are also scheduled to play a friendly against Iran in Tehran on October 15.
Halilhodzic, still to convince after a shaky start as coach, told reporters: "Syria are an aggressive side and this will be our toughest game yet. It's a game we must win."
Japan were held to a goalless home draw by tiny Singapore in their opening 2018 World Cup qualifier, triggering criticism of Halilhodzic's tactics. But they bounced back by beating Cambodia 3-0 and Afghanistan 6-0.
Japan squad:
Goalkeepers - Masaaki Higashiguchi (Gamba Osaka), Shusaku Nishikawa (Urawa), Yuji Rokutan (Sendai)
Defenders - Daiki Niwa (Gamba Osaka), Yuto Nagatomo (Inter Milan), Tomoaki Makino (Urawa), Masato Morishige (FC Tokyo), Koki Yonekura (Gamba Osaka), Maya Yoshida (Southampton), Tsukasa Shiotani (Hiroshima), Gotoku Sakai (Hamburg)
Midfielders - Makoto Hasebe (Eintracht Frankfurt), Yosuke Kashiwagi (Urawa), Shinji Kagawa (Borussia Dortmund), Hiroshi Kiyotake (Hannover) Hotaru Yamaguchi (Cerezo Osaka), Gaku Shibasaki (Kashima)
Forwards - Shinji Okazaki (Leicester City), Keisuke Honda (AC Milan), Genki Haraguchi (Hertha Berlin), Takashi Usami (Gamba Osaka), Yoshinori Muto (Mainz), Takumi Minamino (Salzburg)