Yasuhito Endō is a Japanese football player who plays for J1 League club Gamba Osaka. His brother Akihiro Endō is also a professional footballer. He made his senior international debut in 2002, representing Japan in three World Cups and three Confederations Cups. In the process he earned over 150 caps, scoring 15 goals and becoming the most capped Japanese male player of all-time.
Club career
Endo was born in Kagoshima on 28 January 1980. After graduating from, he joined J1 League club Yokohama Flügels in 1998. In March, he debuted against Yokohama Marinos in the opening game of the 1998 season. Largely as a central midfielder, he helped his club win the championship in the 1998 Emperor's Cup. Due to financial strain, the club was disbanded at the end of the season. In 1999, Endo moved to Kyoto Purple Sanga with contemporaries Kazuki Teshima and Hideo Oshima. He became a regular player and played many matches. However the club was relegated to J2 League at the end of the 2000 season. In 2001, Endo moved to J1 club Gamba Osaka. He was a central player for the club for a long time under manager Akira Nishino. He was selected as a J.League Best Eleven 10 years in a row. In 2005, Gamba won the championship in J1 League for the first time in club history. In 2008, Gamba won the championship in AFC Champions League for 2 years in a row as Japanese club. Gamba also won the Emperor's Cup. Endo was selected "Japanese Footballer of the Year". In 2009, Gamba won the Emperor's Cup for 2 years in a row. Endo was selected Asian Footballer of the Year. Manager Nishino left Gamba after the 2011 season and the club's performance deteriorated. In 2012, Gamba finished at the 17th place of 18 clubs and was relegated to J2 League. Endo remained with Gamba and Gamba won the champions in 2013 season. In 2014 season, Gamba returned to J1 and won all three major title in Japan, J1 League, J.League Cup and Emperor's Cup. Endo was selected J.League MVP first time and "Japanese Footballer of the Year" second time.
International career
Endō played in the 1999 World Youth Championship and Japan finished as runner-up, losing to Spain in the final. Since 2002, Endō has been a member of the senior national team, and was selected for Japan's 2006, 2010 and 2014 World Cup squads. He also was a member of the 2004 and 2011 Asian Cup winning teams. On 24 June 2010, Endō scored from a free-kick against Denmark in a 3–1 win as Japan qualified for the second round of the World Cup. On 12 October 2010, he became the fourth player to earn 100th full international cap for Japan in a friendly match against South Korea. On 16 October 2012, Endo became Japan's most capped player in a friendly against Brazil. His start in this match was his 123rd appearance for the national team, surpassing Masami Ihara's previous record of 122 caps. in 2017, flanked by his teammate Yōsuke Ideguchi Endō was included on Japan's squad for the 2015 Asian Cup and scored the team's opening goal of the tournament in a 4–0 defeat of Palestine. In the team's next match, he earned his 150th cap as Japan defeated Iraq 1–0. He played 152 games and scored 15 goals for Japan until 2015.
Style of play
He is considered a cult hero among fans of Gamba Osaka and the Japanese National Football Team. It is because he has formidable passing ability, leadership, and goal scoring ability. He is also known for his excellent accuracy on free kicks and is revered as one of Japan's most creative midfielders as well as one of the most talented Japanese footballers and playmakers of his generation, despite only playing domestically in his home country.
