Football Dreams: Growing Number of Japanese Soccer Players Set Sights on Europe

Kagawa Shinji takes the field for Dortmund on March 25, 2012. (© AFP/Jiji)

Okudera Yasuhiko (at center) makes his return to Japan with Cologne in a Japan Cup (now Kirin Cup) match at the National Stadium in Tokyo on May 27, 1978. (© Jiji)

Nakata Hidetoshi after moving to powerhouse Roma plays in a match against Milan on January 30, 2001. (© AFP/Jiji)

Honda Keisuke plays for AC Milan in a match against Sampdoria on February 23, 2014, in Genoa. The midfielder’s signing with the club, one of the biggest in European soccer, was major news in Japan. (© AFP/Jiji)