“I hope to see the scouting net cast wider as I know a lot of talented players that fall under the radar as the path is not immediately clear how they can get noticed; they drop out from the sport from this lack of support and structure”
Trials are not very widely publicised and the increase in talent numbers can only be a positive effect for the game as a whole here”
“It seems to fit well on the back of various jerseys with the players’ names sitting just below the number as compared to the traditional style we see in popular leagues like the EPL, LaLiga or the Serie A. Instead, we have a huge heat pressed logo of the league’s principal sponsor – AIA”
The Japanese have romanticised the concept of Kaizen – the pursuit of continuous improvement. Traditionally the word would be associated craftsmen or in business, most famously adopted by Toyota. Kazu is the very embodiment of this philosophy.
When asked by reporters about his future, he bursts out in laughter. “I might (retire) someday.”
He composes himself and with a straight face “If possible, I want to die as a player. That is my true feeling. So when I die, I want to be known as Kazuyoshi Miura, soccer player. Not a former player.”
Football has snailed back up from the sleepy lockdown months and we’re peaking with fantastic spectacles like the absolute stormer of a football match between Manchester City and Real Madrid in the Champions League round of 16 a few nights ago. But at the end of a storm, there’s normally a golden sky; the future is certainly golden for top tier wunderkinds like 19-year-old Takefusa Kubo from Real Madrid and Lee Kang-In of Valencia CF.
