FORMER Premier League champion Shinji Okazaki has turned his attention to building a Japanese club… in Germany.
Okazaki, 38, is a member of Leicester City‘s 2016 title winning side and hung up his boots last summer after a career that spanned England, Belgium, Japan and Spain.
But it was his time playing in Germany for Mainz and Stuttgart that has shaped what he’s doing now with the retired bagsman the owner and head coach of a club in the country’s sixth tier.
Okazaki founded FC Basara Mainz 10 years ago during his time in the Bundesliga at Mainz 05 and has had a huge hand in their success since that time.
The aim was to create an environment where talented Japanese players could develop their game and earn their stripes with facilities that could help them improve as players.
Speaking to Transfermarkt, Okazaki recalled: “Takashi Yamashita [President of Basara Mainz] noticed that many [Japanese] players didn’t develop as much as expected.
“Some found opportunities to play, but when faced with tough conditions, they often blamed their environment or coach instead of taking responsibility for their growth.
“The cultural and practical differences between Japan and Germany were immense – not just in everyday life but on the pitch as well.
“I suggested to Yamashita, ‘Why don’t we create our own team and develop Japanese players ourselves?’ He immediately agreed, saying, ‘Let’s do it!’ That’s how Basara was born.”
It wasn’t a simple start for the club who had to begin their journey in the 11th tier of the German game.
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But thanks to their commitment, and a little help from founding star Takuya Hidaka netting 40 goals in a single season, Basara Mainz earned FIVE consecutive promotions.
As much as Okazaki is aiming high with his new team, the former Foxes frontman is still wanting the club to mainly function as a hotbed for Japanese talent, as well as Germany youngsters too.
He added: “The core idea is to be a place for young Japanese players.
“But I also think we could send ambitious German players to Japanese teams or even to Belgium.
“I want Basara to be a stepping stone for players to try again elsewhere. It’s a concept that’s normal in Japan, but I’d like German players to make use of it too.”
Some 12 of Basara’s 30 registered players herald from Japan with 11 stars coming from Germany.
Okazaki’s ambition of taking the team further up the leagues in Germany has been hit by a stumbling block this season with the club currently 8th in the league.
While Basara are unable to gain promotion to the fifth tier of German football, the Oberliga, without a number of strict requirements, including having at least three youth teams.
Okazaki acted as an owner for the club’s first nine years of operation but is now taking a more hands on role as manager of the side.
The 119-time Japan international conducts his training sessions in English and is currently pursuing his coaching licenses for the future.
But despite his passion for developing Japanese and German talent with Basara, his end goal lies elsewhere.
Okazaki told Transfermarkt that his dream is to one day manage the Japanese national team at the World Cup, eyeing the incredible feat within 20 years.
He said: “I don’t want to just earn a licence and coach in the J-League.
“I want to do things no one else has done, like competing in intense environments. The World Cup is my ultimate goal, and I’ll keep working toward it, even if it takes 10 or 20 years.”
Okazaki is Japan’s third all-time top goalscorer and is considered one of the country’s top footballers in recent history alongside the likes of Shinji Kagawa and Makoto Hasebe.
But if he can create a club that can feed talent to the national team and then take charge of the nation himself, then he may go down as one of Japan’s most important players in history.
