Junichi Inamoto

Junichi Inamoto

Inamoto playing for Kawasaki Frontale in 2010
Personal information
Full name	Junichi Inamoto
Date of birth	(1979-09-18) 18 September 1979
Place of birth	Yusui, Kagoshima, Japan
Height	1.81 m (5 ft 11 1⁄2 in)
Playing position	Midfielder
Club information
Current club	Kawasaki Frontale
Number	20
Youth career
1985–1992	Seiei Gakuen SC
1992–1997	Gamba Osaka
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1997–2004	Gamba Osaka	105	(14)
2001–2002	→ Arsenal (loan)	0	(0)
2002–2004	→ Fulham (loan)	41	(4)
2004–2006	West Bromwich Albion	28	(0)
2004–2005	→ Cardiff City (loan)	14	(0)
2006–2007	Galatasaray	25	(0)
2007–2009	Eintracht Frankfurt	43	(0)
2009–2010	Rennes	5	(0)
2010–	Kawasaki Frontale	60	(2)
National team‡
1995	Japan U-17	3	(0)
1998–1999	Japan U-20	11	(4)
1998–2000	Japan U-23	15	(5)
2000–	Japan	83	(5)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 1 December 2012 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 04:52, 16 December 2011 (UTC)

Junichi Inamoto (稲本 潤一, Inamoto Jun'ichi, born 18 September 1979) is a Japanese footballer who plays as a midfielder for Kawasaki Frontale.

Playing career

Inamoto played for Japanese club Gamba Osaka during his last year of high school, signing with the club in 1997. He was then one of many high profile transfers of Asian players to Europe, signing with Arsenal of the Premier League. Inamoto scored two goals for the Japanese national team at the 2002 World Cup, but had already been released by Arsenal shortly before the tournament began.^[1] He was then signed by Fulham on a long-term loan deal from Gamba Osaka. Initially he settled well at the London club, garnering good notices as a tough-tackling midfielder with an eye for a spectacular goal. He became a cult favourite quickly, scoring four goals over the two legs of Fulham's Intertoto Cup final against Bologna, scoring once in the first leg^[2] and a hat trick in the second.^[3] Other notable goals he scored in his time for Fulham include goals against Tottenham Hotspur,^[4] Sunderland,^[5] Middlesbrough^[6] and also in the 3–1 win against Manchester United at Old Trafford in October 2003.^[7] He also scored in the FA Cup against Everton^[8] which commentator Barry Davies described as "a Japanese peach".^{[citation needed]} However, he sustained a fractured tibia in an international friendly against England, and returned to Gamba Osaka to do promotional work. Fulham were interested in signing him once more, but concerns remained over his recovery from injury.^[9]

Inamoto signed with West Bromwich Albion for a decidedly small £200,000 transfer fee, which was only to be paid once he had made an appearance for the Midlands club.^[10] However, Gary Megson departed as West Bromwich Albion manager shortly afterwards, and successor Bryan Robson was unsure of the player. Inamoto was loaned to Cardiff City for the latter part of the 2004–05 season,^[11] and impressed, being recalled to play a role in West Brom's survival campaign in the Premiership. In 2005–06 he was a regular in the West Brom side, and was called up to the Japan squad for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, the first Albion player to play in the tournament for 20 years.^{[citation needed]} Whilst at West Brom Inamoto scored once, an extra time winner in a League Cup tie against former club Fulham on 25 October 2005.^[12]

On 31 August 2006, he signed for Galatasaray.^[13] On 29 May 2007, it was revealed that he signed a two-year contract with German club Eintracht Frankfurt, joining on a free transfer.^[14] Inamoto was presented in a press conference joining fellow Japanese striker Naohiro Takahara in Frankfurt and was released on 30 May 2009. On 19 June 2009, French Ligue 1 side Rennes announced that Inamoto had signed a contract with them.^[15] He then signed for Kawasaki Frontale on 11 January 2010.^[16]

National team

• 2000 Asian Cup (Champions)
• 2001 Confederations Cup (Runners-Up)
• 2002 FIFA World Cup
• 2003 Confederations Cup
• 2005 Confederations Cup
• 2006 FIFA World Cup
• 2010 FIFA World Cup

Career statistics

(correct as of 1 December 2012)

* Includes Intertoto Cup

International goals

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	4 July 2001	Ōita, Japan	Yugoslavia	1–0	Won	Friendly Match
2.	4 June 2002	Saitama, Japan	Belgium	2–2	Drew	2002 FIFA World Cup Group Stage
3.	9 June 2002	Yokohama, Japan	Russia	1–0	Won	2002 FIFA World Cup Group Stage
4.	28 March 2003	Tokyo, Japan	Uruguay	2–2	Drew	Friendly Match
5.	9 September 2009	Utrecht, Netherlands	Ghana	4–3	Won	Friendly Match

National team statistics

Honours

Arsenal

• Premier League Champions: 2001–02

Fulham

• UEFA Intertoto Cup Champions: 2002

Japan

• AFC U-16 Championship Champions: 1994
• Asian Cup Champions: 2000
• FIFA World Youth Championship Runners-up: 1999
• FIFA Confederations Cup Runners-up: 2001
• FIFA World Cup: Round of 16 2002, 2010

Individual

• J. League Best XI: 2000
• Top Goal Scorer for Japan at the 2002 World Cup
• Nominated for Ballon d'Or: 2002

References

External links

• Junichi Inamoto – FIFA competition record
• Junichi Inamoto at National-Football-Teams.com
• Junichi Inamoto career stats at Soccerbase
• Player profile on Transfermarkt

Japan squads v t e Japan men's football squad – 2000 Summer Olympics 1 Narazaki 2 Nakazawa 3 Matsuda 4 Morioka 5 Miyamoto 6 Inamoto 7 H. Nakata 8 Myojin 9 Hirase 10 Nakamura 11 Miura 12 Sakai 13 Yanagisawa 14 Motoyama 15 Nishi 16 K. Nakata 17 Takahara 18 Tsuzuki Coach: Troussier v t e Japan squad – 2000 AFC Asian Cup Champions (2nd Title) 1 Kawaguchi 3 Matsuda 4 Morioka 6 Hattori 8 Mochizuki 9 Nishizawa 10 Nanami 11 Miura 12 Morishima 13 Yanagisawa 14 Nakamura 15 Oku 17 Inamoto 19 Kubo 20 Takakuwa 21 Shimoda 22 Nakazawa 24 Myojin 26 Kaimoto 27 Kitajima 29 Takahara 30 Ono Coach: Troussier v t e Japan squad – 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup Runners-Up 1 Kawaguchi 2 Uemura 3 Matsuda 4 Morioka (c) 5 Inamoto 6 Hattori 7 H. Nakata 8 Morishima 9 Nishizawa 10 Miura 11 Nakayama 12 Narazaki 13 Yamashita 14 Ito 15 Fujita 16 K. Nakata 17 Myojin 18 Toda 19 Kubo 20 Hato 21 Ono 22 Suzuki 23 Tsuzuki Coach: Troussier v t e Japan squad – 2002 FIFA World Cup 1 Kawaguchi 2 Akita 3 Matsuda 4 Morioka (c) 5 Inamoto 6 Hattori 7 H. Nakata 8 Morishima 9 Nishizawa 10 Nakayama 11 Suzuki 12 Narazaki 13 Yanagisawa 14 Alex 15 Fukunishi 16 K. Nakata 17 Miyamoto 18 Ono 19 Ogasawara 20 Myojin 21 Toda 22 Ichikawa 23 Sogahata Coach: Troussier v t e Japan squad – 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup 1 Narazaki 2 Narahashi 3 Akita 4 Morioka 5 Inamoto 6 Hattori 7 H. Nakata (c) 8 Ogasawara 9 Ōkubo 10 Nakamura 11 Matsui 12 Doi 13 Oku 14 Alex 15 Myojin 16 K. Nakata 17 Miyamoto 18 Nagai 19 Endō 20 Takahara 21 Tsuboi 22 Yamada 23 Kawaguchi Coach: Zico v t e Japan squad – 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup 1 Narazaki 2 Tanaka 3 Chano 4 Endō 5 Miyamoto (c) 6 K. Nakata 7 H. Nakata 8 Ogasawara 9 Tamada 10 Nakamura 11 Suzuki 12 Doi 13 Yanagisawa 14 Alex 15 Fukunishi 16 Oguro 17 Miura 18 Inamoto 19 Motoyama 20 Tsuboi 21 Kaji 22 Moniwa 23 Kawaguchi Coach: Zico v t e Japan squad – 2006 FIFA World Cup 1 Narazaki 2 Moniwa 3 Komano 4 Endō 5 Miyamoto (c) 6 K. Nakata 7 H. Nakata 8 Ogasawara 9 Takahara 10 Nakamura 11 Maki 12 Doi 13 Yanagisawa 14 Alex 15 Fukunishi 16 Oguro 17 Inamoto 18 Ono 19 Tsuboi 20 Tamada 21 Kaji 22 Nakazawa 23 Kawaguchi Coach: Zico v t e Japan squad – 2010 FIFA World Cup 1 Narazaki 2 Abe 3 Komano 4 Túlio 5 Nagatomo 6 Uchida 7 Endo 8 Matsui 9 Okazaki 10 S. Nakamura 11 Tamada 12 Yano 13 Iwamasa 14 K. Nakamura 15 Konno 16 Ōkubo 17 Hasebe 18 Honda 19 Morimoto 20 Inamoto 21 Kawashima 22 Nakazawa 23 Kawaguchi (c) Coach: Okada