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October 22, 2025
 

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SAMURAI BLUE

Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Aug 12, 2015
Mood turns against Halilhodzic after East Asian Cup debacle
If a scoreless draw with Singapore in Japan's opening World Cup qualifier in May marked the end of manager Vahid Halilhodzic's honeymoon period, last week's East Asian Cup has had critics wishing for a divorce already.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Jun 17, 2015
Japan takes booing on chin after Singapore stalemate
Keisuke Honda believes fans were right to boo him and his Japan teammates after Tuesday's shock World Cup qualifying 0-0 draw with Singapore, and insists he would have had no complaints had they voiced their displeasure louder.
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Jun 10, 2015
Halilhodzic looking to build on strong start as qualifiers begin
It would be unthinkable for Japan to begin its 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign with anything other than a win at home to Singapore next Tuesday, but manager Vahid Halilhodzic will be looking for more from his team than just three points.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Apr 1, 2015
Halilhodzic warns against complacency after Uzbekistan rout
New national team manager Vahid Halilhodzic hailed his players' efforts after Tuesday's 5-1 thrashing of Uzbekistan, but warned they will have to prove themselves all over again when he picks his next squad.
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Mar 25, 2015
Halilhodzic gets to work as Japan starts from scratch again
The short, unhappy reign of former national team manager Javier Aguirre has cast a long shadow over Japanese soccer, but replacement Vahid Halilhodzic will care for nothing but the future when he leads the team out for the first time on Friday.
MORE SPORTS
Mar 19, 2015
Halilhodzic passes over Endo for national team
New national team manager Vahid Halilhodzic called up Kensuke Nagai and Takashi Usami, but appeared to bring the curtain down on record cap-holder Yasuhito Endo's Japan career as he named his first squad on Thursday.
Japan Times
SOCCER
Mar 13, 2015
Halilhodzic confident of getting Japan back on track
New national team manager Vahid Halilhodzic believes he is the man to revive Japan's flagging fortunes, but warns the transformation from Asian Cup flops to World Cup hopefuls will not happen overnight.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Feb 11, 2015
Fallout from Aguirre affair likely to have limited reach at JFA
The hiring and firing of Javier Aguirre has left the Japan Football Association with a severe bloody nose, but it remains to be seen if anyone at the governing body will pay for it.
Japan Times
SPORTS / NOTES ON A SCORECARD
Jan 30, 2015
No reason for fans to despair over Nishikori's defeat
What a difference three years makes.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Jan 28, 2015
JFA right to pass up convenient opportunity to fire Aguirre
It remains to be seen how much longer Javier Aguirre will continue as national team manager, but at least the Japan Football Association did not use last week's early exit from the Asian Cup as an excuse to fire him.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Jan 21, 2015
Japan gathering steam as Asian Cup gets down to business
There is certainly room for improvement as Japan takes the defense of its Asian Cup title into the quarterfinals on Friday, but the way the team has improved with each performance so far in Australia suggests the best is yet to come.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Jan 12, 2015
Houllier challenges Japan to raise game
Former Liverpool and France manager Gerard Houllier has urged Japan to cast aside its inferiority complex and close the gap on the world's leading soccer nations.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Jan 12, 2015
Houllier challenges Japan to take next step
Former Liverpool and France manager Gerard Houllier has urged Japan to cast aside its inferiority complex and close the gap on the world's leading soccer nations.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Jan 7, 2015
Japan looking to put troubles on back burner at Asian Cup
Preparations could hardly have been more disrupted as Japan gets ready to defend its Asian Cup title, but that is all likely to be forgotten once the tournament kicks off on Friday.
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Nov 12, 2014
Aguirre's experiments on back burner as Asian Cup looms
Japan manager Javier Aguirre is running out of time to build a team for January's Asian Cup, but the Mexican will hope that the return of several familiar faces for two friendlies over the coming week can provide instant solutions.
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Sep 3, 2014
Aguirre ready to start work rebuilding Japan from scratch
Japan begins a new era on Friday night as manager Javier Aguirre leads the team out for the first time, and if first impressions of the Mexican are anything to go by, the next four years should be an interesting journey.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup / SPORTS SCOPE
Jul 8, 2014
Time for fans, media to get real about Samurai Blue
"The bigger the lie, the more people will believe it."
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup / SOCCER SCENE
Jun 21, 2014
Drab draw leaves Japan hoping for miracles
"Believe in miracles," ran the headline of one sports newspaper after Japan's 0-0 draw with Greece left its World Cup hopes hanging by a thread, but simply salvaging pride from a bitterly disappointing campaign looks a more realistic ambition.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Jun 18, 2014
Japan facing early exit if mistakes go unheeded against Greece
Japan must beat Greece on Thursday to stand any realistic chance of surviving at the World Cup, but a repeat of Saturday's performance in a frustrating defeat to Cote d'Ivoire will bring nothing but an early ticket home.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 15, 2014
From pets to Pikachu, Japan shows its Samurai Blue colors
[View the story "Samurai Blue fever surges for Japan's first 2014 World Cup game" on Storify]
Takaichi makes history as Japan’s first female prime minister
Liberal Democratic Party President Sanae Takaichi reacts to applauding lawmakers after being elected prime minister at the Lower House on Tuesday.
Path clears for Takaichi to become PM as LDP and JIP agree to form coalition
Liberal Democratic Party President Sanae Takaichi (right) reaches out to shake hands with Japan Innovation Party leader Hirofumi Yoshimura after signing a coalition deal Monday evening in Tokyo.
Rare female yakuza walks path to redemption in Japan
Retired yakuza Mako Nishimura sorts fallen leaves during a clean-up activity at the Gifu Gokoku shrine in Gifu Prefecture on Sept. 28.
Takaichi government will likely spend less than expected
Liberal Democratic Party President Sanae Takaichi at the National Diet Building in Tokyo on Monday
Why I chose Japanese citizenship over permanent residency
Jon Heese (second left) takes part in a 2024 New Year's nihonshu barrel opening ceremony.
Nakatsu keeps its cool as gentrification looms
Shunsuke Takahashi, owner of the cafe Hood by Vargas, says the Osaka neighborhood of Nakatsu feels brighter and calmer with the influx of new businesses.
How Japan’s greatest psychological horror game came home
Series composer Akira Yamaoka and writer Ryukishi07 were integral figures in helping one of Japan's greatest horror gaming franchises land a Japanese setting.
Japan leads in in-depth AI awareness, new global study finds
In Japan, 55% were “equally concerned and excited” about the rise of AI in daily life, while 28% were “more concerned than excited.”
What does Jimbocho think of its unexpected ‘cool’ status?
Tokyo's Jimbocho neighborhood is a haven for book lovers, its rows of secondhand bookstores spilling over with printed materials.
What you need to see at this year's Tokyo film festival
Chloe Zhao’s "Hamnet"

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Rock group The Yellow Monkey played K-Arena Yokohama in June as part of a nationwide tour. Concerts are increasingly popular in the age of social media as users value in-person experiences.
Inside Japan’s arena boom: Sports, sound and city-building
By Patrick St. Michel

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