Shunsuke Saito earns first Japan national team call-up

Shunsuke Saito, a 21-year-old attacker playing for Belgian club KVC Westerlo, has earned his first call-up to the Japan national football team. Saito, who rose to prominence with Mito HollyHock in the J2 League before moving to Belgium earlier this year, expressed his excitement regarding his selection and the high level of training within the squad.

In an interview via the Japan Football Association's YouTube channel, Saito shared a lighthearted anecdote about his first experience traveling with the senior national team. While departing from Belgium, he initially headed toward the economy class section during baggage check, only to be redirected by teammate Junya Ito toward the available business class seating. Saito noted that this experience differed significantly from his time with the national youth teams.

Saito also addressed the coincidence of sharing a name with current national team coach Shunsuke Nakamura. While teammates currently refer to him as ‘Shun’ or ‘Shunsuke,’ he acknowledged the difficulty of the name overlap and expressed a desire to gradually establish his own identity on the pitch. He aims to showcase his dribbling and shooting abilities as he looks toward a potential debut in upcoming matches.