is a former

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player.He currently works as an individual coach for the Japan national team.

Playing career

Sakamoto was born in Saitama on February 24, 1978. After graduating from

Nippon Sport Science University , abbreviated as , is a private university in Setagaya, Tokyo and Aoba-ku, Yokohama. The precursor of the school was founded in 1893, and it was chartered as a university in 1949. The school is known for the many famous athletes among its alumni. ...

, he joined

J1 League The , the J.League or the for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Japan and the highest level of the Japanese football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation ...

club

JEF United Ichihara , full name and also known as , is a Japanese professional football club based in Chiba, capital of Chiba Prefecture. They currently play in the J2 League, Japanese second tier of professional football. History Furukawa Electric SC (19 ...

(later ''JEF United Chiba'') in 2000. He became a regular player as right side midfielder from summer 2001. He also played as defensive midfielder not only right side midfielder. He played all matches in league competition except for one game for suspension in 2004 until 2006. The club won the champions

J.League Cup The is a Japanese Association football, football (soccer) competition organised by J.League, the men's association football league in Japan. It has been sponsored by Yamazaki Biscuits (YBC) of Yamazaki Baking (formerly Yamazaki Nabisco) since it ...

for 2 years in a row (

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

). In 2007, he moved to

Albirex Niigata is a professional football club based in Niigata, Japan. Formed in 1955 as Niigata Eleven SC, it was renamed Albireo Niigata FC in 1995, and Albirex Niigata in 1997. They currently play in J1 League after being promoted from J2 League as cha ...

. He played in all 34 matches as left side back and left midfielder. In 2008, he returned to JEF United Chiba. He played many matches as right side back. However the club results were bad and was relegated to

J2 League The or simply J2 is the second division of the and the second level of the Japanese association football league system. The top tier is represented by the J1 League. It (along with the rest of the J.League) is currently sponsored by Meiji Yasud ...

first time in the club history from 2010. His opportunity to play also decreased from 2010 and he retired end of 2012 season.

Club statistics

Honors

Team *

Champion:

References

External links

* 1978 births Living people Nippon Sport Science University alumni Japanese men's footballers J1 League players J2 League players JEF United Chiba players Albirex Niigata players Men's association football midfielders Association football people from Saitama (city) 20th-century Japanese sportsmen {{Japan-footy-midfielder-1970s-stub