Japan names Akira Nishino to replace Vahid Halilhodzic just two months before World Cup
By Andrew McKirdy, The Japan Times.Akira Nishino will lead Japan at this summer’s World Cup in Russia after the Japan Football Association confirmed Monday that it had fired manager Vahid Halilhodzic just two months before the tournament begins.
“There is always a risk when you change managers,” JFA President Kozo Tashima told reporters at a packed news conference in Tokyo, citing poor results and a lack of “communication and trust” with the players as the reasons for Halilhodzic’s dismissal.
“There is also a risk when you don’t change managers,” he said. “If it was guaranteed that just by changing managers you would magically make the team better, we would do that. But we have considered all the risks and listened to all points of view.”
Nishino, who served as the JFA’s technical director, has signed a contract that will take him to the end of the June 14-July 15 World Cup, where Japan has been drawn in a first-round group with Colombia, Senegal and Poland.
“It was my job as technical director to support the manager, and I feel a responsibility for this situation,” the 63-year-old Nishino said in a statement issued by the JFA.
“It’s very difficult to change managers at this time, but helping the team is more of a priority than my own personal situation so I decided to take the job.”
Nishino made his name as manager of Japan’s under-23 team at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and oversaw a famous 1-0 victory over Brazil that was dubbed the “Miracle of Miami.” He then went on to forge a long and successful career as a club manager in Japan, winning both the J. League and Asian Champions League titles with Gamba Osaka.
“Even if it increases our chances of winning at the World Cup by only one or two percent, we had to act,” said Tashima. “We only have two months left until the World Cup, so the new manager had to come from within the organization. Nishino has seen the team more than anyone else and he will be our new manager.
“We chose Nishino because of the timing. If we had done this earlier, we might not have chosen Nishino. But with only two months left, in this situation, we came to this decision.”
Tashima confirmed that he personally dismissed Halilhodzic at a Paris hotel on Saturday despite the 65-year-old Bosnian having led Japan to qualification for its sixth straight World Cup, punching its ticket with a 2-0 home win over Australia last August.
Results and performances in friendly matches since then have been poor, however, with a 1-1 draw against Mali and a 2-1 defeat to Ukraine — neither of which has qualified for the World Cup — last month proving to be the final straw for the JFA.
“Halilhodzic came in and built a team in a very short time and got us to the World Cup,” said Tashima, who said Halilhodzic was “surprised” to be given the news. “He is a very serious character and very passionate about football, and he conveyed that passion to the players.
“But the games we have played since we qualified for the World Cup have led to this dismissal. It’s not only based on winning or losing games. We listened to the opinion of the players and other people but that was not the only basis for this decision. In the Mali and Ukraine games, communication and trust with the players had slipped a little and we looked at all that and made our decision.”
Halilhodzic’s spiky personality frequently ruffled feathers after arriving in Japan to take over from Javier Aguirre in March 2015, and rumors of his impending dismissal swirled throughout his three-year reign.
But Tashima denied that personality clashes within the JFA led to his dismissal, and insisted that Nishino, who was Halilhodzic’s immediate boss in his role as technical director, was anything other than supportive.
“After we had lost (4-1) to South Korea in the E-1 Football Championship in December, we met to discuss things,” said Tashima. “We discussed who would take over and decided to stick with Halilhodzic. Through all that, Nishino supported Halilhodzic until the end.
“I don’t think there was any friction within the JFA.”
Nishino becomes Japan’s third manager since Alberto Zaccheroni left the job following the team’s first-round exit from the 2014 World Cup. Mexican Aguirre was named as Zaccheroni’s replacement but was fired in March 2015 after a match-fixing case naming him as a defendant was accepted by a Spanish court.
“Most people would say that it’s not a good thing to change so frequently,” said Tashima. “But given the circumstances, I don’t think you can say it’s always bad not to stick to that rule.
“I wouldn’t be taking responsibility if I didn’t take this decision. It’s the responsibility of the president to take decisions to move Japanese football forward. I won’t make any statement about whether I should stay or quit. This is the choice I have taken to increase Japan’s chances of reaching the second round of the World Cup, even if it is only by one or two percent. That’s my responsibility.”
Halilhodzic’s assistant coaches, Jacky Bonnevay and Cyril Moine, as well as goalkeeping coach Enver Lugusic, also left their positions. Nishino did not appear before the media on Monday but is scheduled to speak on Thursday.
“Of course each manager will have a way that he wants his team to play, and he will explain that on Thursday,” said Tashima. “But it will likely be a style of football that is Japanese. That means keeping hold of the ball and passing it around.”
Japan begins its World Cup campaign against Colombia in Saransk on June 19, before taking on Senegal in Yekaterinburg on June 24 and Poland in Volgograd on June 28.
Former Samurai Blue boss Takeshi Okada supports choice of Akira Nishino as new manager
The Japan TimesNew men’s national team manager Akira Nishino, appointed following the shock dismissal of predecessor Vahid Halilhodzic, received the backing Tuesday of the only other Japanese manager to lead the national team at the World Cup.
With just two months until the 2018 tournament kicks off in Russia, the Japan Football Association on Monday dropped the bombshell that it had fired Halilhodzic after the national team’s poor performances in its most recent warmup matches, a 1-1 draw with Mali and a 2-1 loss to Ukraine late last month.
Takeshi Okada, Japan head coach at the 1998 World Cup in France and in 2010 in South Africa, said JFA technical director Nishino, who coached J. League side Gamba Osaka to multiple titles, including the 2008 Asian Champions League, was the “best choice” to take the reins.
“In the sense that he knows the national team well, he is the best choice,” Okada said. “Because he’s been around the team continuously, I think he has a clear picture of what needs to be done.”
The JFA cited poor communication between Halilhodzic and his players as one of the reasons for firing the 65-year-old from Bosnia-Herzegovina, but Okada said exchanging ideas won’t be a problem for Nishino.
“On top of getting great results in the J. League, he was even better when it came to communicating with the players,” Okada said.
Okada, whose second stint as Japan boss came unexpectedly after then head coach Ivica Osim suffered a stroke in November 2007, knows better than most the challenge facing Nishino in Russia.
With his unheralded squad not expected to make an impact, Okada won plaudits for leading the young group to the round of 16 in South Africa with a dynamic brand of passing soccer.
Nishino has just weeks to bring together a squad in generational transition and whose preparation has been hampered by injuries to key players and the shock of Halilhodzic’s dismissal.
Japan captain Makoto Hasebe admits he feels ‘responsible’ for Vahid Halilhodzic getting fired
The Japan TimesJapan captain Makoto Hasebe said Monday he feels partly to blame for the sacking of national head coach Vahid Halilhodzic ahead of the World Cup finals in Russia.
“I feel responsible as a player,” Hasebe told reporters after training with his German Bundesliga club Eintracht Frankfurt. “I had the most responsibility among all the players because (Halilhodzic) trusted me with the position of captain.”
The Japan Football Association announced Monday it has terminated its contract with Halilhodzic and appointed former Gamba Osaka coach and the association’s technical director Akira Nishino for the job.
Halilhodzic steered Japan to a spot in its sixth straight finals despite taking the position just months before qualifying matches for the World Cup finals began in 2015.
Hasebe, who has 108 caps with Japan since making his debut in 2006, expressed his appreciation for the 65-year-old from Bosnia Herzegovina but said the team has to move on.
“It’s difficult to think of what to say,” he said. “I’m just focused on what is in front of me instead of looking back.”
The 34-year-old Hasebe is bound for his third World Cup finals following the 2010 and 2014 tournaments.
Japan opens its 2018 campaign against Columbia in Group H on June 19.