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faric lisbriyansyah on Friday, September 7, 2012
Manchester United's Shinji Kagawa cut a forlorn figure after being
substituted at halftime during Japan's 1-0 friendly victory over the
United Arab Emirates, having made little impact on the game.
After enjoying an impressive start to his United career, triggering
'Kagawa-mania' across Japan, the forward failed to mask his
disappointment after Thursday's match.
"Of course I wanted to play
more minutes," the 23-year-old told reporters after Japan struggled in
their final warm-up for a home World Cup qualifier against Iraq on
Tuesday.
"I always want to score but the coach makes the
decisions. I'll have to look at my performance today," added Kagawa, who
sat at the end of the bench in the second half, barely talking.
"My body felt a little heavier than I expected, probably from the flight."
Kagawa
has been a instant hit at Old Trafford, earning praise from United
manager Alex Ferguson, who paid £15m for the former Borussia Dortmund
playmaker in June.
His transfer to one of the world's top clubs
elevated him to celebrity status, leading to him being mobbed by fans at
Sapporo airport before a friendly last month.
However, Kagawa was
ineffective yesterday, striker Mike Havenaar sparing Japan's blushes
with a 69th-minute winner to give the Asian champions an unconvincing
win.
Midfielder Keisuke Honda had blazed over with barely a minute
on the clock following a clever back-heel from Kagawa but that early
promise was the United signing's best moment in a tired-looking display.
Kagawa
often found himself taking the ball into blind alleys and was hauled
off after frustrating coach Alberto Zaccheroni by attempting a few too
many stepovers which led to no end product.
"Fatigue is not an
excuse," Kagawa said. "I wasn't able to run as much as I thought I
would. I gradually want to focus my sights on the Iraq game. The next
game will be a completely different atmosphere."
Captain Makoto
Hasegawa and Honda were also substituted early on Thursday ahead of the
clash with Iraq, currently under the stewardship of former Japan coach
Zico.
Japan overpowered Oman 3-0 and Jordan 6-0 at home before
being held 1-1 in Australia in June in their first three games in the
final round of Asian 2014 World Cup qualifiers.
"The next game is
the most important. It will be a lot tougher - it's why I'm here,"
Kagawa added. "Hopefully I can make a real difference and we can take
our chances."
The Blue Samurai lead World Cup qualifying Group B by five points from Iraq, Australia and Jordan.
sumber: http://www.independent.co.uk
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