Masami Ihara facts for kids
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | September 18, 1967 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Koka, Shiga, Japan | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.82 m | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing position | Defender | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1983–1985 | Moriyama High School | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1990–1999 | Yokohama F. Marinos | 267 | (5) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2000 | Júbilo Iwata | 20 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2001–2002 | Urawa Reds | 54 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 341 | (7) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National team | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1988–1999 | Japan | 122 | (5) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Teams managed | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2008 | Japan U-23 (assistant) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2009–2014 | Kashiwa Reysol (assistant) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2018 | Avispa Fukuoka | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019–2023 | Kashiwa Reysol (assistant) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2023–2024 | Kashiwa Reysol | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Honours
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Masami Ihara (井原 正巳, Ihara Masami, born September 18, 1967) is a famous Japanese former football player and manager. He was recently the manager for the J1 League club Kashiwa Reysol.
Masami Ihara was a defender. He was the captain of the Japan national team for over ten years in the 1990s. He played alongside famous players like Kazuyoshi Miura and Ruy Ramos. Ihara held the record for the most national team appearances with 122 games, until Yasuhito Endo broke it in 2012.
Contents
Playing for Clubs: Mister Marinos
Ihara was a key player in the J1 League during the 1990s. He spent most of his playing career with Yokohama F. Marinos. There, he formed a strong defense with Tsuyoshi Kitazawa. After finishing his studies at University of Tsukuba, he joined Nissan Motors, which later became Yokohama Marinos. He quickly became a very important player for the team.
Fans even gave him the nickname Mister Marinos because he was so important to his club for a long time. He was the backbone of the team and helped young talented players like Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi and Shunsuke Nakamura grow.
After leaving Marinos, Ihara also played for Júbilo Iwata in 2000 and then for Urawa Reds from 2001 to 2002. He stopped playing football in 2002. In total, he played 341 league games and scored 7 goals. He was chosen as one of the best players (Best Eleven) for six years in a row, from 1991 to 1997. He was also picked for the J.League 30th Anniversary Best Eleven team.
Playing for Japan: International Career
Masami Ihara first played for the Japan national team on January 27, 1988, against the United Arab Emirates. He was still a university student at the time. After his first game, he became a regular player for Japan. He played in the 1990 FIFA World Cup qualification and the 1990 Asian Games.
In 1992, Japan won the AFC Asian Cup for the very first time, with Ihara as a key player. However, Japan did not qualify for the 1994 FIFA World Cup. After that, Ihara became the captain of the Japan team. He played in the 1995 King Fahd Cup and the 1996 AFC Asian Cup.
In 1997, Japan finally qualified for the 1998 FIFA World Cup for the first time ever! This was a huge moment for Japanese football. During the 1998 World Cup in France, Ihara's experience as a defender was very important. He helped Japan's defense, playing alongside strong players like Yutaka Akita and Eisuke Nakanishi. The young goalkeeper, Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi, was also Japan's first choice at that time.
After the 1998 World Cup, Ihara played in the 1999 Copa América. This was his last game for Japan. He played a total of 122 games and scored 5 goals for his country.
Coaching Football Teams
After his playing career, Masami Ihara started coaching.
- In 2006, he became an assistant coach for the Japan U-23 national team for two years.
- From 2009, he worked as an assistant coach for the club Kashiwa Reysol. He even took charge of the team as a temporary coach a couple of times.
Coaching Avispa Fukuoka
In 2015, Avispa Fukuoka hired Ihara as their head coach. The team had been struggling in the J2 League. Under Ihara's leadership, Avispa Fukuoka had a great season. They won 24 out of 42 games and earned 82 points, finishing third in the league.
Avispa then went into the playoffs. They beat V-Varen Nagasaki 1–0 and then drew 1–1 against Cerezo Osaka. Because Avispa was the higher-ranked team, they were promoted to the J1 League!
Ihara's first game as coach in the J1 League in 2016 was a 2–1 loss against Sagan Tosu. Their first win in the league came in their eighth match, a 1–0 away win against FC Tokyo. He left Avispa Fukuoka at the end of the 2018 season.
Achievements and Awards
Masami Ihara won many awards and titles during his career as a player and manager.
With Nissan Motors / Yokohama F - Marinos
- Emperor's Cup: 1991, 1992
- J1 League: 1995
- Asian Cup Winners' Cup: 1991–92, 1992–93
With Júbilo Iwata
- Japanese Super Cup: 2000
With Japan National Team
- AFC Asian Cup: 1992
Individual Awards
- Asian Footballer of the Year: 1995 (This means he was chosen as the best football player in Asia that year!)
- J.League Best XI: 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997 (Chosen as one of the best players in the league for these years)
- MasterCard Asian/Oceanian Team of the 20th Century: 1998
- J.League 20th Anniversary Team
- J.League 30th Anniversary Team
See also
- List of footballers with 100 or more caps
