After the World Cup, Japan’s Nakata decided it was the time he retired from the national team.

“I will never go out onto the pitch again as a professional football player, but I will never give up football,” said the 29-year-old, whose third FIFA World Cup™ ended in a 4-1 defeat to defending champions Brazil.

“I had been determined since half a year ago that I would finish my career after the World Cup and retire from the football world where I stayed for some ten years,” said Nakata.

“After the match against Brazil on June 22, which was my last game, I felt surely I love football. I was very moved, much more than I had expected.

“Coming into the World Cup, I thought the Japanese team had very good potential. Each player’s individual skills are very well and speedy. The only disappointment was that we couldn’t play to our maximum.

“I tried to lead my teammates in the past four years. I’m feeling sorry that the World Cup ended like this, but I know now that fans had understood what I’ve tried to do was right, for sure,” added Nakata.

Source: WCoffsite