23 Junichi Inamoto Position: Midfielder Born: 18-Sep-1979 Height/Weight: 181/75 Birthplace: Osaka Previous Teams: Seiei Gakuen SC; Gamba Osaka; Arsenal (England); Fulham (England); West Bromwich Albion (England); Cardiff City (Wales); West Bromwich Albion (England) J.League Appearances: 118 Goals : 16 First Appearance: 12-Apr-1997 Gamba Osaka- vs - Sanfrecce Hiroshima (at Expo'70 Stadium) First Goal : 19-Apr-1997 Gamba Osaka- vs - Shimizu S-Pulse (at Expo'70 Stadium) Premiership Appearances: 15 Goals : 2

J.League Statistics Year Team Matches Goals 1997 Gamba Osaka 27 3 1998 Gamba Osaka 28 6 1999 Gamba Osaka 22 1 2000 Gamba Osaka 28 4 2001- Gamba Osaka 13 2 TOTAL 118 16 England Premier League 2001/02 Arsenal 0 0 2002/03 Fulham 19 2 2003/04 Fulham 22 2 2004- West Bromwich 3 0 2004/05 Cardiff 12 0 2005/06 West Bromwich 22 0 TOTAL 78 4 Turkish League 2006/07 Galatasaray 30 1 TOTAL 30 1 Bundesliga 2007/08 Eintracht Frankfurt -- -- TOTAL -- --

Junichi Inamoto is one of Japan's top defensive midfielders, and has become a fixture on the national team with sparkling play in both the Olympic U-23 side and the full national team which won the Asian Cup. Inamoto is a classic volante, with a nose for the ball, an aggressive attitude, and the strength to muscle an opponent off the ball. Just as important are his offensive skills. Inamoto is excellent at pushing the ball out of the defensive end and finding teammates open on attack. His pinpoint, 40-meter passes frequently create scoring opportunities for teammates. Inamoto also has a strong shot with either foot, and can dribble well enough to beat an opposing defender when he decides to move forward on the break. Inamoto played an imporant role in the success of the National Team in the 2002 World Cup, scoring two key goals and making his mark on the tournament. Although Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger had already decided to release Inamoto before the World Cup began, there was considwerable second-guessing of the club's treatment of Inamoto following his fine performance.

But as soon as Arsenal decided to send him on his way, numerous other offers quickly arrived and Inamoto selected Fulham as his destination for 2002-03. At Fulham, Inamoto was able to see a bit more playing time than he did at Arsenal, but despite a good start, he fell out of the lineup following an ankle injury in December, and was unable to break back in once he returned. At the end of the 2002-03 season, coach Jean Tigana was replaced and the squad made some changes which gave Inamoto more chances to play in 2003-04. Again an injury kept him from solidifying a spot in the squad, but by the close of the season he was once again playing or a farily regular basis, and coach Chris Coleman was telling the press that he was hoping that "some agreement can be reached" to keep the Japanese midfielder at Fulham. When Japan took on England at the city of Manchester Stadium, on June 1, 2004, Inamoto seemed determined to clinch a full transfer to Fulham then and there. His performance in the match was brilliant, eaning plaudits from all the major newspapers and contributing greatly to Japan's surprise 1-1 draw. But with ten minutes left to play, tragedy struck!

With time running down, Inamoto tried to make a sliding tackle on Phil Neville, only to have the England defender step right on his ankle, fracturing the tibia and putting him out of action for several months. The injury immediately dashed Inamoto's transfer hopes, and by early summer he had returned to the Gamba Osaka roster. Inamoto's injury was expected to sideline him for only a few months, but Fulham apparently was not willing to wait, whereas Gamba was more than happy to have him back, even if he was only doing promotional and publicity duty. Inamoto had now been derailed by injury three times, and he seemed to realise how short a football career can be. Although he returned to Japan breifly, he asked his agent to look for any deal at all that would allow him to remain in Europe once the 2004-05 season began.

With just two days left before the transfer window, West Bromwich Albion swooped in and grabbed Inamoto for a mere 200,000 euro transfer fee. At first it seemed like a good deal for both club and player, but a coaching change and a new strategy in the clubhouse left Inamoto on the fringes of the team even as he regained fitness. In the end ,West Brom decided to send Inamoto to Division 1 club Cardiff, to build up his stamina. After arriving at the Welsh club, Inamoto became a star performer, and the Cardiff manager was impressed enough to beg West Brom to extend the loan. At the end of the season, though, Cardiff were unable to find the financial wherewithal to pick up his contract, and Inamoto had to return to West Brom and fight for a place in the squad.

On the positive side, Inamoto did recover his health and playing skill enough to merit inclusion in the squad, from time to time. On the other hand, he never really seemed to earn the sort of respect from his coach needed to win a regular starting spot. It is hard to say how much of this is Inamoto's fault and how much can be laid at the door of Bryan Robson, who didnt have much fondness for the Japanese midfielder. Clearly both bear some of the responsibility, and neither was inclined to make the effort to overcome their poor relationship. In the end, Inamoto was able to win his fredom, and he moved to Turkey's Galatasaray in mid-2006. After a steady but unspectacular season there, in 2006-07, he moved on to Germany in mid-2007 to join Naohiro Takahara at Frankfurt.

Due to his lack of regular playing time, Inamoto dropped out of the starting lineup for Japan, and saw only a breif appearance as a reserve defensive player in Germany. This was very disappointing if you consider how much he contributed four years earlier, and what an energetic and optimistic player he used to be. Clearly, moving to Europe has been a tragic waste, for Inamoto, and his example should be studied carefully by young players considering offers from Europe. If he had pursued a less ambitious course -- perhaps moving to a league such as Holland, France or Scotland before trying to move to the next level, Inamoto might have used the experience to advance his career. But by going for the glory, with the move to Arsenal, he seems to have ensured that his legacy will be based not on his playing abilities, but on the disparaging nickname "t-shirt", which he received while sitting on the bench at Arsenal. Though he has managed to make a decent living from football, as a dependable squad player, the stardom that seemed to beckon back in 2002 has passed him by.

National Team Data & History
NT Caps: 63 NT Goals: 4 Tournaments: World Youth Championships (1999) Sydney Olympics (2000) Asia Cup (2000) Confederations Cup (2001) World Cup Korea/Japan (2002) Confederations Cup (2003) Asia Cup (2004) Confederations Cup (2005) FIFA World Cup Germany (2006)
Date	Vs.	Score	Location	Status	Min.	G
2-5-2000	Mexico	0-1	Hong Kong	Start	90	0
2-8-2000	Hong Kong*	0-0	Hong Kong	Start	90	0
2-13-2000	Singapore	3-0	Macao Stadium	Start	90	0
2-16-2000	Brunei	9-0	Macao Stadium	Start	90	0
2-20-2000	Macao	3-0	Macao Stadium	Start	90	0
3-15-2000	China	0-0	Kobe Universiade	Start	90	0
4-26-2000	Korea	0-1	Seoul, Korea	Start	90	0
6-4-2000	France	2-2	Rabat, Morocco	Start	90	0
6-11-2000	Slovakia	1-1	Miyagi Stadium	Start	90	0
6-18-2000	Bolivia	2-0	Yokohama Int'l	Start	90	0
8-16-2000	UAE	3-0	Hiroshima"BigArch"	Start	90	0
10-14-2000	Saudi Arabia	4-1	Sidon, Lebanon	Start	90	0
10-17-2000	Uzbekistan	8-1	Sidon, Lebanon	Start	79	0
10-20-2000	Qatar	1-1	Sidon, Lebanon	Start	67	0
10-23-2000	Iraq	4-1	Beirut, Lebanon	Start	67	0
10-26-2000	China	3-2	Beirut, Lebanon	Start	90	0
3-25-2001	France	0-5	St.Denis,France	Start	69	0
4-25-2001	Spain	0-1	Cordoba, Spain	Start	90	0
5-31-2001	Canada	3-0	Niigata Stadium	Start	90	0
6-2-2001	Cameroon	2-0	Niigata Stadium	Start	90	0
6-7-2001	Australia	1-0	Yokohama Int'l	Start	90	0
6-10-2001	France	0-1	Yokohama Int'l	Start	45	0
7-1-2001	Paraguay	1-0	Sapporo Dome	Start	90	0
7-4-2001	Yugoslavia	1-0	Oita "Big Eye"	Start	90	1
10-4-2001	Senegal	0-2	Lens, France	Start	71	0
10-4-2001	Nigeria	2-2	Southampton, England	Start	70	0
11-7-2001	Italy	1-1	Saitama Stadium	Start	75	0
3-27-2002	Poland	1-0	Lodz, Poland	Start	54	0
4-29-2002	Slovakia	1-0	Nat'l Stadium	Start	45	0
5-2-2002	Honduras	3-3	Nat'l Stadium	Start	75	0
5-14-2002	Norway	0-3	Oslo, Norway	Start	90	0
5-25-2002	Sweden	1-1	Nat'l Stadium	Start	68	0
6-4-2002	Belgium	2-2	Saitama Stadium	Start	90	1
6-9-2002	Russia	1-0	Yokohama Int'l	Start	85	1
6-14-2002	Tunisia	2-0	Nagai Stadium	Start	45	0
6-18-2002	Turkey	0-1	Miyagi Stadium	Start	45	0
10-16-2002	Jamaica	1-1	Nat'l Stadium	Start	82	0
3-28-2003	Uruguay	2-2	Nat'l Stadium	Start	90	1
5-31-2003	Korea	0-1	Nat'l Stadium	Start	65	0
6-8-2003	Argentina	1-4	Nagai Stadium	Start	90	0
6-18-2003	New Zealand	3-0	St.Denis,France	Start	90	0
6-20-2003	France	1-2	St.Etienne,France	Start	73	0
6-22-2003	Colombia	0-1	St.Etienne,France	U.R.	--	--
8-20-2003	Nigeria	3-0	Nat'l Stadium	Start	90	0
9-10-2003	Senegal	0-1	Niigata Stadium	Start	90	0
10-8-2003	Tunisia	1-0	Tunis, Tunisia	Start	90	0
10-11-2003	Romania	1-1	Bucharest, Romania	Start	90	0
11-19-2003	Cameroon	0-0	Oita Stadium	Start	90	0
2-18-2004	Oman	1-0	Shizuoka Stadium	Start	90	0
3-31-2004	Singapore	2-0	Jalan Besar Stadium	Start	90	0
4-28-2004	Czech Rep.	1-0	Sparta Prague Stadium	Start	64	0
5-30-2004	Iceland	3-2	Manchester, England	Start	90	0
6-01-2004	England	1-1	Manchester, England	Start	85	0
12-16-2004	Germany	0-3	Tokyo National Stadium	Start	60	0
3-30-2005	Bahrain	1-0	Saitama Stadium	Sub	1	0
5-22-2005	Peru	0-1	Niigata Stadium	Sub	22	0
5-27-2005	UAE	0-1	National Std. Tokyo	Sub	7	0
6-4-2005	Bahrain	1-0	Manama, Bahrain	Sub	3	0
6-8-2005	North Korea	2-0	Bangkok Thailand	Start	90	0
6-15-2005	Mexico	1-2	Hannover, Germany	Sub	31	0
6-19-2005	Greece	1-0	Frankfurt, Germany	U.R.	--	0
6-22-2005	Brazil	2-2	Koln, Germany	U.R.	--	0
9-07-2005	Honduras	5-4	Miyagi Stadium	Start	63	0
10-08-2005	Latvia	2-2	Riga, Latvia	Start	90	0
10-12-2005	Ukraine	0-1	Ukraine	Start	90	0
11-12-2005	Angola	1-0	Natl Stadium, Tokyo	Start	80	0
2-28-2006	<Bosnia	2-2	Westfahren Std.(Germany)	Sub	20	0
6-6-2006	Malta	1-0	Frankenstadion, Germany	Sub	21	0
6-18-2006	Croatia	0-0	Frankfurt, Germany	Sub	45	0
6-22-2006	Brazil	1-4	Dortmund, Germany	Start	90	0
6-05-2007	Colombia	0-0	Saitama Stadium	Start	45	0