Tatsuhiko Kubo: Japanese association football player

He played for the Japan national team.

Tatsuhiko Kubo

Personal information
Full name	Tatsuhiko Kubo
Date of birth	(1976-06-18) June 18, 1976 (age 47)
Place of birth	Chikuzen, Fukuoka, Japan
Height	1.81 m (5 ft 11+1⁄2 in)
Position(s)	Forward
Youth career
1992–1994	Chikuyo Gakuen High School
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1995–2002	Sanfrecce Hiroshima	183	(67)
2003–2006	Yokohama F. Marinos	83	(26)
2007	Yokohama FC	8	(1)
2008–2009	Sanfrecce Hiroshima	27	(3)
2010–2011	Zweigen Kanazawa	50	(15)
Total		351	(112)
National team
1998–2006	Japan	32	(11)
Honours Sanfrecce Hiroshima Runner-up Emperor's Cup 1995 Runner-up Emperor's Cup 1996 Runner-up Emperor's Cup 1999 Yokohama F. Marinos Winner J1 League 2003 Winner J1 League 2004 Representing  Japan FIFA Confederations Cup 2001 Korea-Japan AFC Asian Cup 2000 Lebanon
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Kubo was born in Chikuzen, Fukuoka on June 18, 1976. After graduating from Chikuyo Gakuen High School, he joined J1 League club Sanfrecce Hiroshima in 1995. He debuted in 1996 and became a regular striker as Takuya Takagi successor from 1998. However the club was relegated to J2 League in 2002. He moved to Yokohama F. Marinos in 2003. In 2003, the club won the champions J1 League. He was also selected Best Eleven and "Japanese Footballer of the Year award". However his opportunity to play decreased for low back pain from 2004. He moved to Yokohama FC in 2007. However the club was relegated to J2 and he also did not play many matches. After that, he returned to Sanfrecce Hiroshima in 2008 and moved to Japan Football League club Zweigen Kanazawa in 2010. He retired end of 2011 season.

After 1998 World Cup, in October 1998, Kubo was selected the Japan national team by new manager Philippe Troussier. On October 28, he debuted for Japan against Egypt. Although he played at 2000 Asian Cup and 2001 Confederations Cup, his opportunity to play in the matches was few and he was not selected Japan for 2002 World Cup. After 2002 World Cup, in December 2003, he was selected Japan for 2003 East Asian Football Championship and he scored 2 goals against China. This goals were his first goal for Japan. In the first half of 2004, he played as striker and scored 6 goals in 9 games. However, he did not play for low back pain from late 2004. From February 2006, he came back to Japan and he scored 3 goals in 6 matches, however he was not selected Japan for 2006 World Cup. He played 32 games and scored 11 goals for Japan until 2006.