Two-time World Cup star Keisuke Honda welcomes the competition from Japan teammate Yuya Kubo, vowing to recapture his place on the national team as he searches for a solution to his severe lack of playing time with AC Milan.
Kubo again was Vahid Halilhodzic's preferred choice on the right wing in Thursday's World Cup qualifier against the United Arab Emirates and came through, scoring Japan's first goal and assisting the second during a 2-0 victory at Al Ain in winning his third cap.
Honda was relegated to bench duty, coming on for Kubo with 12 minutes left to see out the win. It was just Honda's second appearance of 2017 for club or country; in his only other game this year, he played one minute of injury time for Milan in an Italian Cup match in January.