This was published 5 years ago
Honda's accord: The path to Victory is all about hard work
By Michael Lynch
He's one of the biggest names in Asian soccer.
His career trajectory, which has taken him to huge clubs in Europe and Central America and now to Australia's biggest, is a marker of how far the Asian, in particular the Japanese game, has travelled in recent decades.
New Melbourne Victory signing Keisuke Honda.Credit: AAP
Now Keisuke Honda has arrived in Australia to be a key component in an exciting Melbourne Victory line-up looking to defend the title they won in such adversarial circumstances last year, with finals victories on the road in Sydney and Newcastle.
At 32, the attacking midfielder with the trademark bleached-blond hair is a legend of the Japanese game. He has played for the Samurai Blue in the past three World Cups, scoring in South Africa, Brazil and also in Russia, while he also helped Japan to their Asian Cup triumph of 2011, when they beat Australia in extra time in the final in Qatar.
His initial impressions of Australia, Melbourne and the local game are positive - although he has stern words about the commitment and dedication that modern youngsters, who often enjoy a pampered lifestye, need to succeed at the highest level.
But there have been surprises - notably the ground sharing with other teams and codes and the lack of privacy at Victory's training. Not to mention Melbourne's traffic.
''Some things are surprising, when we are using the same stadium with rugby teams. I have never experienced that before," Honda told the Sunday Age.
''Second, anyone can watch our training in the field [at Gosch's Paddock, next to AAMI Park]. That's also my first experience.
''The third, it's a big surprise for me, in the town in Melbourne. There is no traffic for me.''
That might stun grid-locked Melburnians who complain about traffic jams in a city which has increased its population by two thirds in the past 30 years. But Honda puts it in perspective.
''Normally in the big cities where I have lived so far, in Mexico, in Moscow, Milano and Tokyo, all those have huge traffic. But I like this. It's very easy to move somewhere. It's only five or six minutes to get here, there are many stadiums around the city. It's a very good image for me.''
Honda has been settling in with his new teammates for several weeks now and is happy with what he has discovered about the Australian game during his brief exposure.
Japan's Keisuke Honda scores against Senegal in this year's World Cup.Credit: AP
''I expected about the level I have found. I heard that here there is a lot of young players. I knew what kind of soccer Kevin [Muscat, Victory coach] wanted to play. I think my task is to change something from last year.
''I probably can do that. I am confident to change the team. I am talking with other experienced players, they are helping me as well. Carl [Valeri], Broxy [Leigh Broxham] and the new players, Georg [Niedermeier] and Raul [Baena] as well. [Ola Toivonen had just joined when Honda spoke to the Sunday Age].
''We have enough players to understand each other. Of course we have young players still, they have skill, but they need to develop.
''I can't compare with other teams so I still don't know how other teams are playing but we have some good players, some good young players but we can improve. We need to improve, that's my opinion. We shouldn't be satisfied with this level.''
From a nation that is so often associated with speedy, technical players, Honda's take on what is needed to be a champion is instructive, and it's something he hopes to inculcate in his Victory teammates.
The Melbourne side has already shown it has a strong mentality in the way it came back to win last year's grand final, but Honda says players should never be satisfied.
''Sometimes in soccer the skill and physicality is not enough to win," he said.
''Italy [where he played for AC Milan] is a typical country. Even if they don't have high skill they know how to win a game. We have to learn how to get a point every game, even when we play bad we have to get points every game.
''We should not be satisfied. That is my philosophy. Always we have a space to improve, as a player or as a team. Kevin knows that and thinks about it, and I want to help the team this season.''
That constant striving and restlessness is what has given Honda such a great career. But the hunger, allied to discipline and commitment, is what has driven Japanese soccer forward, he says.
''I think we are very strict as a culture. If we focus on baseball we also can beat the US baseball teams. In soccer we are developing right now and we want to win the World Cups so all players are very hungry for playing in Europe," he said.
''I always say to young Japanese players that they should go abroad because you can't talk about anything without knowing global football. I think Australia is in a similar situation."
Young players need to accept that challenge, he says, rather than stay in their comfort zone where the living is easy.
''They don't have to go abroad because Melbourne is like Tokyo - a good city to live in. They can survive here.
Keisuke Honda is a superstar in Japan and Asia.Credit: AP
''But there are a lot of countries where a lot of kids want to earn money, and they are really hungry for success. So they have no choice to stay but to go abroad. But here in Japan, Australia and the US it's a different situaiton.
''That's why young people should push themselves otherwise no one will help your dream to come through.
''I had a natural drive to do so. My father and my grandparents were very strict to me also, they gave me a strict education.''
Honda could have gone to many parts of the world to continue his career, but chose Australia because it offered something different, and Victory pursued him ardently.
''There were two things. When Kevin and I talked in the first conversation he really wanted to get me to join the team and he said this to me. He wanted me to change the team," said Honda.
''I was satisfied with that conversation and that's the first part of why I came, because he really wanted to get me.
''And second I like new challenges ... This challenge is for me very exciting.''
Looking back over a lengthy career, Honda says his best memories - at least with the Japanese national team - came from the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
''It made me today's player, well known. I scored two goals in that World Cup, it was the first time we had gone out of the group in a tournament outside of when we hosted it.''
His club career also produced great memories. ''Last year in Mexico was only one year but it was a really nice experience. My time at AC Milan was fantastic, that was an amazing club.
''When I finish training, or before training, the old players like Baresi, Maldini, Nesta, Shevchenko, Gattuso, Gullit, everyone came to the facilities, and that reminded me that I was playing at AC Milan.
''That and Moscow were highlights. I played Champions League there. I think there my growth [as a player] was rounded out.''
Like everyone in the modern game he points to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as the stand-out players, but says that one man who should not be forgotten is his ex-Milan teammate Kaka.
As far as defenders go, its two Brazilians. ''Thiago Silva and David Luiz, we had bad memories when Japan play against Brazil. Always we struggle with them. So I think they are the best defenders,'' he says with a grin.