his move to Schalke 04 would make him a better player. In December 2010, Uchida was called up for the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar. He played all the first three matches in the tournament and helped Japan reach the knockout stage. However, Uchida was suspended for the quarter–final against Qatar after being booked two times on different occasions. He returned to the starting line-up, playing against South Korea in the semi–finals and played the whole game, as Japan beat the opposition team 3–2 in the penalty shoot–out following the match being played for 120 minutes, in a 2–2 draw. In the AFC Asian Cup Final against Australia, Uchida started and played 120 minutes, as they beat the Socceroos 1–0 to win the AFC Asian Cup, thanks to Tadanari Lee. Later in the year, he helped Japan keep three clean sheets in three Japan's matches between 7 June 2011 and 2 September 2011. Two years later, Uchida was called up to the national side for the 2013 Confederations Cup squad. He was featured three times in the tournament, as Japan loss all three matches and was eliminated in the Group Stage. At one point after losing to Brazil, Brazilian media gave Uchida's performance the lowest score out of the match. In May 2014, Uchida was called up to the 2014 World Cup squad. Prior to this, Uchida was involved in three friendly matches, which a game against Cyprus on 27 May 2014, he scored his second international goal for the club. Unlike the previous World Cup, Uchida started all three matches in the World Cup, which saw Japan eliminated from the Group Stage. Following Japan's elimination, he hinted about retirement from the national team. A month later, Uchida later reflected about playing in the World Cup. Expecting to be picked for the AFC Asian Cup, Uchida, however, was cut from the squad ahead of the tournament. It was revealed that he was recovering from his injury. Uchida returned to the national side two months later, playing two times for the side. Personal life Outside of football, Uchida is considered a massively popular figure in his native country of Japan. During a match against 1. FC Nürnberg on 26 February 2011, 90 women from Japan visited the Veltins-Arena to see Uchida play, and his popularity has led to him being referred to as a Japanese Beckham. Uchida's popularity during his