FW Kiyo Ueda (27, Feyenoord) made his first appearance with an unusual jersey number change and scored a goal against a difficult South American opponent. The Japan national team made final preparations at the match venue, Panasta, on the 9th ahead of a friendly match against the Paraguay national team on the 10th. For this activity, the ace forward has changed from the number 9 he wore for the national team to the number 18. It's a number I've been attached to ever since I started playing soccer, admiring my father. The striker, who has hit eight shots in eight games since the start of this season's league games, will create a new image of “18” in consecutive games against South American teams.
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Ueda's long-cherished wish came true and he got the number, giving him a new forward image.
He has previously worn numbers 13 and 21 on the national team, and since 2022 has been number 9, but he has changed his uniform number for this campaign. Speaking of number 9, it is the number that symbolizes a striker. However, what I kept asking for was a different number. Ueda, who said, “I had no interest in so-called 'good numbers,''' said that the number he had been asking (the association) for a long time was 18. It was a favorite of his father, Akira, who was fond of Klinsmann, a legendary forward who played for the former German national team.
“The reason I started playing soccer was because I admired my father.I have always worn the number 18 to imitate my father.'' Before turning professional, at Kashima, and at the Tokyo Olympics, whenever I had a chance, I chose it. “Now that I'm playing both overseas and on the national team, I want to continue to be particular about that,'' a request he kept making was granted for the first time this time with the A national team.
This season, he has exploded with his team Feyenoord, scoring 8 goals in the first 8 league games, making him the top scorer in the Netherlands. The fact that he showed off his ability to score, one of the best in Japan, also helped him achieve his dream.
He scored two goals against Utrecht on the 5th and joined the national team. “My body is in good condition and I feel good when I play.I can play with confidence because of the results I'm getting, and I think it will have a positive effect on me,'' he said of his good form. His fellow defender Watanabe describes him as, “He's the core of the team, and we can't score without him.'' Such a steady presence showed confidence in their ability to score goals against Paraguay, who boasted a solid defense, conceding only 10 goals in 18 games in the South American qualifiers that decided to qualify for the World Cup.
This will be his first time playing No. 18 at the Hinomaru since the Tokyo Olympics. Keisuke Honda, Yuya Osako, and Takuma Asano have also carried the number on the A's team in the past, but he says flatly, “It doesn't matter to me. I think it's the individual's background that gives meaning to the number.'' If more boys aspire to the number 18, “I think my father would be happy about that,'' he said, emphasizing that he was focusing on his relationship with his father.
“It's special for me to finally get the number I wanted and be able to carry it alongside my country.'' The striker stands on the pitch with a new mindset, scoring a goal against the South American powerhouse and quickly spreading the number 18.[Jun Nagata]
◆Uniform number 18 In 1998, Japan's first appearance in the World Cup, forward Shoji Jo, who was designated as their ace, wore this number. MF Shinji Ono played in the 2002 and 2006 tournaments for the second consecutive tournament. From the 2010 tournament, FW Keisuke Honda, FW Yuya Osako, and MF Ryota Oshima carried the weight, and in the previous 2022 tournament, FW Takuma Asano carried the weight. Former Mexican national team midfielder Andres Guardado, who participated in five consecutive World Cups, the most in history, prefers to wear number 18.
Uniform number a la carte
◆Cruyff's “14'' While the standard number for regular players was 11 or lower, Cruyff chose “14'' for both the Netherlands national team and Barcelona.
◆ Pronouns The number 13 on the German national team is Gerd Muller, Ballack, and Thomas Muller. Former Italy representative Pirlo wears “21”.
◆No. 02 Keisuke Honda, who wore the number 10 at AC Milan, chose 02 from among the available numbers when he transferred to Mexico's Pachuca. The club is displayed in two digits by adding a zero to numbers 1 to 9.
◆From Jordan The number 23 that Beckham wore at Real Madrid comes from the jersey number of former NBA player Michael Jordan. Raul wore the number 7, which until then had been synonymous with Beckham.
◆With “+” Zamorano, who played for Chile during his time at Inter Milan, put a small “+” between 1 and 8 of “18”. Add 9=Feeling is the meaning of number 9. The number 9 was worn by Ronaldo of Brazil.
[Japan National Team]International friendly match against Paraguay, ranked 39th in FIFA/Live reporting
