Japan Name Strong Squad For South Africa Test

Shunsuke Nakamura has been summoned by Japan for their upcoming matches in South Africa and Hong Kong.

The midfielder has been out-of-sorts since joining Spanish club Espanyol in the summer but is set to play two games in four days for the Blue Samurai.

Japan face 2010 World Cup hosts South Africa in Port Elizabeth on November 14 and then move to Hong Kong for a 2011 Asian Cup qualifier four days later.

"We're getting to play away, which is something we need to be doing," coach Takeshi Okada told reporters in Tokyo.

"We have an opportunity to play in the country of the World Cup finals. I know they haven't had the results recently, but from what I remember at the Confederations Cup, they're a very strong side.

"It will also be great experience for the players as they get a taste of playing in South Africa.

"It'll be huge for them, mentally," he said. "It will also help the national team staff prepare for the finals, find out firsthand what they need and don't need."

Japan Squad:

GK: Eiji Kawashima (Frontale), Shusaku Nishikawa (Trinita)

DF: Yuji Nakazawa (Marinos), Yuichi Komano (Jubilo), Daiki Iwamasa, Atsuto Uchida (Antlers), Yasuyuki Konno, Yuhei Tokunaga (Tokyo)

MF: Shunsuke Nakamura (Espanyol), Yasuhito Endo (Gamba), Kengo Nakamura (Frontale), Daisuke Matsui (Grenoble), Yuki Abe (Reds), Makoto Hasebe (Wolfsburg), Keisuke Honda (Venlo), Junichi Inamoto (Rennes)

FW: Keiji Tamada (Grampus), Hisato Sato (Sanfrecce), Yoshito Okubo (Vissel), Shinji Okazaki (S-Pulse), Takayuki Morimoto (Catania)