Gotze to earn €4.6m per year while Dortmund close in on Kagawa extension - report

The 19-year-old signed a deal until 2016 and will receive a lucrative pay rise while the Japan star is set to sign a new contract with the German champions

Borussia Dortmund are seriously committed to retaining their stars, and according to Bild, have made Mario Gotze their highest-paid player.

On Tuesday, Gotze signed a two-year contract extension that will see him remain with the Ruhr side until 2016, and now it is alleged that the Germany international will receive wages in the amount of €4.6 million per year. 


The value exceeds any of his team-mates, and is a substantial increase over his previous deal, which amounted to approximately €1m per annum.

Having tied down Gotze, Dortmund are now determined to reach a new deal with Shinji Kagawa. The Japan international's contract is set to expire in 2013, and the player will reportedly extend his stay in the next few days.

Dortmund have been keen to tie down their stars, with Gotze, Neven Subotic, Mats Hummels, Lukasz Piszczek and Sven Bender under contract until 2014 or later. 

Marco Reus, who will be a BVB player on July 1, has also committed his long-term future to the club, having penned a deal to 2017.

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Japan to host Venezuela in August friendly at the Sapporo Dome

In their first meeting since February 2010, the two countries will use the friendly as a mid-summer tune-up before their World Cup qualifiers in September



The Japan Football Association (JFA) announced on Monday night that the Sapporo Dome would be the stage for an August 15 friendly between Japan and Venezuela.The two sides last faced each other in February 2010 at Oita Stadium, battling to a scoreless draw. Since that match, Japan has enjoyed a resurgence after the World Cup under coach Alberto Zaccheroni, while Venezuela placed fourth in last year's Copa America.

The South American nation are in provisional third place in the Conmebol standings with seven points from four matches, while Japan begins the final leg of their World Cup qualifying campaign in August with matches against Oman, Jordan and Australia.The hosts may be without their younger players, depending on the country's performance at the 2012 London Olympics.Following the friendly, Venezuela will travel to Peru and Paraguay in early September, while Japan host Iraq at Saitama Stadium before traveling to face France in an October friendly. - http://www.goal.com/

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Miyaichi: I'm relieved that we could play well for Fabrice Muamba

The 19-year old discussed his relationship with Muamba after contributing an assist to Bolton's crucial relegation clash against Blackburn on Saturday afternoon



Bolton's Ryo Miyaichi was "relieved" after his contributions in Saturday's 2-1 win against Blackburn on an emotional day for the club.

The match was the first for the team since the sudden collapse of Fabrice Muamba seven days prior during an FA Cup fixture against Tottenham. That match was abandoned, and the following Premier League date against Aston Villa was also postponed.

"For [Fabrice] Muamba and for us it was a must-win," Miyaichi told reporters after the match. "So I'm relieved that we played well and got a good result."We knew that no matter how hard it was for us, he was the one suffering and we had to play well for him."The 19-year-old set up his team's second goal with a well-placed corner kick that David Wheater headed in at the 34th minute."I've practiced corner kicks before, but after being given the responsibility [of taking the corners] I'm glad I was able to contribute to a goal," the former Feyenoord winger elaborated.

Miyaichi also reminisced about meeting Muamba after arriving at Bolton."[Fabrice] was the first player who talked to me when I came," the youngster recalled. "He greeted me in Japanese, and I thought 'wow, there are some really happy players here!'"All we can do right now is pray for him." - http://www.goal.com

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Bochum's Takashi Inui: I want to play in the Bundesliga as soon as possible

If one thing is certain at VfL Bochum on match day, it's that Takashi Inui will be leading the attack for the Ruhr valley club. The 23-year-old has started 23 matches since his arrival in Germany and with seven goals and four assists to his name.



Takashi Inui received a call-up to the Japanese national team for the World Cup qualifier against Uzbekistan on February 29, and he was happy about receiving the call-up, all the more as it has been quite a while. Also, because Kiyo (Hiroshi Kiyotake) and (Keisuke) Honda have been injured, I thought that if I wasn’t considered this time I wouldn’t get another, so that was reassuring as well. Then it was up to me to make the best out of it.

Football in Germany is quite different from soccer in Japan. In Japan, it’s regarded as more important to defend as a team and there’s more emphasis on the passing game. Here the play is more direct, and improving of individual skills is prioritized. But there are not many players who are like me here, at least I haven’t seen any in the second division who have a similar playing style; as a rather uncommon player type, I guess it is not easy to defend against me.

There aren’t too many things which actually surprised me. It was clear to me that the players are strong [physically]. As you can see, I belong to the 'lighter' type of Japanese players. Of course, you can become physically stronger by training on machines, but that's not my goal. You can get past opponents with pace. In fact, there are many possibilities to get past robust challenges. - http://www.goal.com

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AFC Champions League Match Day 2 Results

Kashiwa Reysol 5-1 Jeonbuk Motors



Last season's beaten finalists Jeonbuk crashed a second consecutive 5-1 defeat in the ACL, with Japanese champions Kashiwa Reysol earning their first points of the competition.

The game sprang to life late in the opening 45, with three goals in five minutes before the break for the hosts. Jorge Wagner assisted Daisuke Nasu to score on 40 minutes, withLeandro Domingues netting from the spot, before dramatically adding another late goal moments prior to the interval.

The K-League champions steadied after the break with China international Huang Bowen pulling one back on 51 minutes, but it seemed all over on 77 minutes when the hosts won a penalty only for Leandro Domingues to fail to convert. However once again late in the half Kashiwa added more to their tally. Leandro Domingues set up Junya Tanaka to make it 4-1 on 89 minutes, before substitute Akimi Barada scored the fifth in stoppage-time. - http://www.goal.com/

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Birmingham make offer for Bayern's Usami, but player closes in on Nurnberg move

The Japan international has gathered interest from England, but is already in advanced talks over a move to northern Bavaria, with FCN having confirmed their interest



Bayern Munich attacker Takashi Usami has amassed no shortage of interest from clubs both in Germany and abroad having made clear his intent to leave the Allianz Arena this summer.

In February, FCN confirmed their interest in Usami, who is currently on loan at Bayern from Gamba Osaka. The German record champions have an option to make the deal permanent fora fee in the region of €3 million, but have turned down a move for the player, who has made just one Bundesliga appearance this season. And now, Bild reports that the 19-year-old has verbally committed his future to Nurnberg.

Usami will reportedly join FCN on loan with an option to buy, although the deal could fall through if Dieter Hecking's side are relegated. And if a move to Nurnberg collapses, Usami could be on his way to England.Nurnberg are currently 10th in the Bundesliga table, six points above the relegation zone with eight matches left to play. - http://www.goal.com

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Montedio Yamagata vs Ventforet Kofu match preview

JAPAN J-LEAGUE DIVISION 2: 12BET odds Montedio Yamagata vs Ventforet Kofu 3/20 12PM GMT+8

Kofu is at the 13th place and is hosting one of the outsiders of the tournament on home ground. Kofu has gained just 6 points in the last 7 rounds; Yagamata has gained 4, so the winners 3 points might be vital. Montedio Yamagata is one of the outsiders of the tournament and is at the 17th place with 4 points. This team has passed too many goals in the own sheet and it will be very hard to eliminate this with such performance. Yagamata has lost with minor difference scores in the last 2 rounds and has more worsened its condition.

Kofu has not less passed goals in the own sheet; during 7 rounds Kofu has scored 7 and passed11 goals. Yagamata players have scored the less 4 goals in the rival’s sheet and passed 12 in their own. Out of the 4 home ground matches the hosts have won 1, drawn 2 and lost 1 match. The guests have lost all 3 matches on away ground, so Kofu has real chance to gain 3 points.

 

 

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