Known for passing tempo, set pieces and technical calm; biggest achievements: 2008 AFC Champions League MVP, 2011 Asian Cup winner, over 150 Japan caps.
One rank above: Takehiro Tomiyasu at #8.
One rank below: Yuto Nagatomo at #10.
Japan's editorial top five: Hidetoshi Nakata · Shinji Kagawa · Keisuke Honda · Makoto Hasebe · Shunsuke Nakamura.