AC Milan midfielder Keisuke Honda believes Japan has reaped the benefit of recalling a number of seasoned veterans and says experience will be crucial to the Samurai Blue's chances of retaining their Asian Cup title in Australia in January.
New coach Javier Aguirre used his first four games in charge to experiment with a raft of uncapped players, with Yoshinori Muto and Tsukasa Shiotani two in particular showing great promise, even if team results were patchy.
But the Mexican boss recalled two-time World Cup captain Makoto Hasebe and picked the likes of record caps-winner Yasuhito Endo and Yasuyuki Konno for Japan's final two warm-ups before the Jan. 9-31 Asian Cup.