TOKYO, July 12 (Reuters) - The president of the Japan Football Association (JFA) has slammed the country's J-League as boring.
JFA chief Motoaki Inukai said he had obtained data showing Brazilian soccer players shoot "60 times more often" than their Japanese counterparts.
"I was informed by the Brazilian FA that players in that country have taken around 300,000 shots at goal before turning professional," Inukai told Sunday's Japanese media.
"Here in Japan it's only about 5,000. That's 60 times less. At a young age players aren't used to shooting. That is why the J-League is boring -- there are not enough shots on goal."
Only last month Inukai was echoing Japan coach Takeshi Okada's bold declaration that Japan could reach the semi-finals of next year's World Cup in South Africa.
But Inukai admitted: "There is a large difference in mentality when it comes to shooting. It's no wonder we can't score goals."
