hiː mˌeɪd hɪz fˈɜːst fˈʊl ˌɪntɚnˈæʃənəl deɪbjˈuː ˌɔn ˈeɪpɹəl wˈʌn, nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd nˈaɪnti ˈeɪt, ɐɡˈɛnst sˈaʊθ kɚɹˈiːə wɛn hiː wʌz sˈɛvəntˌiːn jˈɪɹ ænd θɹˈiːhˈʌndɹɪd twˈɛnti tˈuː dˈeɪz ˈoʊld, wˌɪtʃ mˌeɪd hˌɪm ðə jˈʌŋɡɪst plˈeɪɚ hˌuː ɹˌɛpɹᵻzˈɛntᵻd dʒəpˈæn.
He made his first full international debut on April 1, 1998, against South Korea when he was 17 year and 322 days old, which made him the youngest player who represented Japan.