It's all gone pear-shaped for Avispa Fukuoka. Relegated from J1 at the end of 2006, the Kyushu side were expected to make a swift return to the top flight under the auspices of former Sydney FC coach Pierre Littbarski. The German World Cup winner knows the J. League well - he was a star at JEF United in the early nineties, before going on to coach the inaugural Yokohama FC in the lower reaches of the Japanese game.

Things have gone horribly wrong since the appointment of Littbarski, however. Fukuoka only went down after losing the promotion/relegation playoff on away goals to Vissel Kobe at the end of 2006, but despite signing experienced Australian international Alvin Ceccoli, the southern side could only finish seventh in their thirteen team league last season.

This season the J. League welcomed two new additions to J2 in the form of FC Gifu and Roasso Kumamoto - making a tough league even tougher to get out of. The result is that after fifteen rounds of action, Avispa Fukuoka are currently struggling in twelfth place in the fifteen team league.

Ever the innovator, at the start of the season Littbarski decided to do away with Fukuoka's Brazilian gaijin and replace them with players that he became acquainted with during his time as a coach in the fledgling A-League. It has been a "verkorksten" strategy. After scoring 26 goals in 45 games from midfield last season, Alex has gone on to become a key player at J1 side Kashiwa Reysol. Lincoln scored sixteen goals in 39 games for Fukuoka last season before he was shipped out to Shonan Bellmare, who are very much in the race for promotion to the top flight next season. That's a position that Avispa Fukuoka can only dream of.

In their places came Sydney FC duo Mark Rudan and Ufuk Talay to line up in defence and midfield respectively. Following the departure of Alvin Ceccoli, Australian international striker Joel Griffiths was signed on loan. Fukuoka also brought in the likes of Mike Havenaar from Yokohama F. Marinos and veteran Teruaki Kurobe from JEF United. They have all failed to impress.

Only former Kashiwa Reysol man Tetsuya Okubo has shown any kind of form, and he is the club's current top scorer with five goals in fifteen games. The rest of Fukuoka's high-profile signings have struggled. After spending most of Sydney FC's championship-winning season on the bench, Mark Rudan looks set to do the same at Fukuoka. He has struggled with knee injuries for most of the season, but his 92-kilogram frame has also made him an easy target for some of J2's more nimble-footed attackers.

Ufuk Talay's expansive passing game has been stifled by the quicker pace of Japanese football and his explosive temperament has at times riled some of J2's nit-picking referees - who must rank as some of the most pedantic in world football. Only Joel Griffiths has shown glimpses of his best form, but injuries, suspensions and international call-ups have limited his productivity to just three goals in nine games. 

After a succession of embarrassing defeats - including a humiliating derby day home defeat to J2 newcomers Roasso Kumamoto, Littbarski was given three matches to turn things around. He failed to do so. Yet the German has been spared the axe by an admission from club officials that they cannot afford to sack him! Indeed, so dire are Fukuoka's financial straits that J2 officials are nervously hoping that Fukuoka don't go under.

It's a world away from the top flight, and Fukuoka will need a miracle to get back there any time soon, given that they are already a massive twenty points behind league leaders Sanfrecce Hiroshima. Their struggles will also vindicate those who claimed that the tried-and-tested method of signing Brazilians to fill the three foreign squad places available was the only way to guarantee success. In a traditionally conservative country like Japan, the fortunes of Fukuoka's three Australians - not to mention Eddy Bosnar's JEF United, who are struggling in last place in J1, means that J. League teams are likely to think twice when it comes to signing Australians in the future.

That's the least of Avispa Fukuoka's current concerns. Unless they can generate some cash flow... let alone start to win some games, they could become the next Japanese team to crumble under the weight of financial strain. Far from walking in a Litti wonderland, Avispa Fukuoka seem to have found themselves in a nightmare of their own making.

The so-called Pan-Pacific Championship kicks off in Hawaii this afternoon, with Los Angeles Galaxy (that's right kids... the team that contains DAVID BECKHAM) taking on Japan's Gamba Osaka, while Sydney FC do battle with Houston Dynamo.

With a marketing drive that would make even the most over-the-top American sports promoter proud, the tournament will supposedly answer the question that has plagued not that many people for lo these many years - which league produces the best teams?

Don't ask me what the criteria for taking part in the tournament is - in the case of the LA Galaxy I suppose it's having at least one famous player, while Sydney FC were generously described by the Honolulu Advertiser as having just been crowned A-League champions, despite the fact that the A-League season is still going, and Sydney came fourth... out of eight.

Gamba Osaka, meanwhile, have made the friendly kickabout a top priority by releasing a mere seven players for international duty with Japan. The tournament didn't even receive a mention on the Gamba Osaka website until yesterday, while contrary to the Advertiser's semi-factual claims, the matches will not be screened on Japanese TV, where interest in the tournament rates somewhere between zero to nothing.

Still, I personally can't wait for the competition for the simple reason that whoever wins it will trumpet themselves as "the unofficial best team in the region!" It might be a friendly tournament involving teams that are either out-of-form or that haven't played for months but by golly, it'll sure tell us who can play! I'm so excited, and I just can't hide it...

Pan-Pacific Championship

Well that was quick. After provoking howls of fury from certain sections of the domestic press for his frank assessment of the A-League, new Australia coach Pim Verbeek has seemingly won over some of his detractors following the Socceroos' clinical defeat of Qatar in their opening World Cup qualifier. 

Australia hammered Qatar 3 - 0; it should have been at least six, with the Qatari's seemingly overwhelmed by a Socceroos line-up containing the likes of Everton star Tim Cahill, Palermo ace Mark Bresciano and Celtic striker Scott McDonald. The goals were all scored within the opening thirty-three minutes and but for some wayward second-half finishing the Aussie's could have run-up a proverbial cricket score.

The victory was enough to momentarily silence some of the critics who seemed ready to blame Verbeek for everything from a potential dip in attendances at A-League games to the severe storms currently lashing the country - I wouldn't have been surprised if someone tried to rename La Nina - "La Verbeek."

Still, the straight-talking Dutchman just seemed happy to have got the job done. The real test now comes in the form of China at altitude next month. If Australia needs any reminder of just how much of a role weather can play in the outcome of matches, they need only watch a tape of the Japan - Thailand clash, with the Thai's looking visibly uncomfortable in the snow in Saitama.

Evidently not one to be too perturbed by the machinations of the press, Verbeek did let one cat out of the bag. When TV commentator Simon Hill reminded the Dutchman that former Socceroos assistant-coach Johann Neeskens had not only learned the words to the Australian national anthem but actually sung it with gusto during the World Cup, Verbeek suggested that he hopes to have learned the lyrics after fourteen qualifying matches - and went on to claim that he'll sing it on TV when he does!

From Euro-snob to "Aussie Pim" - it's a funny old game indeed.

The news that Australia talisman Harry Kewell has been overlooked by new coach Pim Verbeek for Australia's opening World Cup qualifier against Qatar provoked less wailing and collective gnashing of teeth than I might have expected.

That's probably because Australian football fans have already worked themselves into an hysterical frenzy over Verbeek's frank assessment that he would rather select European-based players who were training regularly, over players currently plying their trade in the A-League.

The reaction that Verbeek's statement caused was immediate and sadly indicative of Australia's insular mindset. The suggestion that the Dutchman pack his bags and head back to his snobby Euro-football might have been a predictable one from the average flag-waving fan, but when the calls are led by Fox Sports commentator Robbie Slater and Sydney FC coach John Kosmina, it's harder to fathom.

The fact that not a single ball has been kicked under Verbeek's reign has been incredibly overlooked. Nor has Verbeek's obvious knowledge of Asian football been taken into account - the Dutchman was formerly coach of J-League sides Omiya Ardija and Kyoto Sanga FC, and was twice an assistant coach of the South Korean national team, before guiding them as head coach during the 2007 Asian Cup. Oddly enough the same Australian fans who snipe that the Koreans played "boring football" remain silent on the subject of some of the football on offer in the A-League. The fact that Sydney FC coach Kosmina grumbled about how to utilise 2002 World Cup winner Juninho surely speaks volumes.

Now Verbeek has walked into the lion's den - desperately under-prepared as his team faces up to a tricky looking Qatar in Melbourne. An all A-League Socceroos side could only manage a 1-1 draw with Melbourne Victory at the weekend, in Australia's only hit-out before the World Cup campaign kicks off. That surely vindicates Verbeek's claim that an all A-League team would struggle to qualify for the World Cup.

Patriotic jingoism aside, Verbeek's decision to drop Harry Kewell smacks of an attempt by the Dutchman to assert some authority over the squad. Kewell is, after all, the most storied player in the Socceroo ranks. As a 17-year-old he scored in both legs of Australia's agonising World Cup defeat at the hands of Iran. In 2003 he tormented England in a 3-1 demolition of "the Old Country" at Upton Park and was instrumental in Australia's epic World Cup playoff win over Uruguay in 2005. Crucially, he scored the goal the sent Australia through to the second round of the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

Yet the erstwhile Liverpool midfielder has been plagued by injury and poor form over the past few seasons. His poor spot-kick against Japan in the 2007 Asian Cup sent Australia on the way to a penalty shoot-out loss, and his chances of regular first-team football appear limited at Liverpool. Form and fitness aside, Harry Kewell simply should not be expected to carry the national team every time he takes to the pitch.

The commotion over Verbeek's A-League assessment and the subsequent omission of Kewell has at least generated feverish interest in the clash with Qatar. Should Verbeek's men register a first-up victory at a restlessly sold-out Telstra Dome it might silence the sceptics - for now. It won't, however, dampen the perception that Australians are growing increasingly intolerant of outsiders. One thing is the same - when it comes to being criticised, Australians remain as reactionary as ever.

Having visited the incredible Toyota Stadium during the recent FIFA Club World Cup, I began to consider some of the best stadiums I've ever seen games in.

I've been fortunate enough to watch football in many different stadiums. At the 2006 FIFA World Cup I attended games at the Fritz-Walter-Stadion in Kaiserslautern, the Allianz Arena in München and the Gottlieb-Daimler-Stadion in Stuttgart.

At the FIFA Club World Cup, we saw games at the National Stadium in Tokyo, the futuristic Toyota Stadium and of course Nissan Stadium in Yokohama. I've seen games in more ramshackle grounds too - my favourite being the Südstadion in Köln, where I once saw Fortuna Köln striker Seyedali Mousavi hit a passing train with a hopelessly inaccurate penalty against VfL Bochum.

These days I watch the majority of my football at Shimizu S-Pulse's atmospheric Nihondaira Stadium.

Set amongst the Nihondaira hills with a spectacular view of Mount Fuji and the port city of Shimizu below, it's hard to imagine a more picturesque venue for a football stadium.

The ground itself isn't too bad either, with four distinct stands rising up over the landscape. The so-called 'Back Stand' features a roof that stretches only three-quarters of the way across the stand. Like many I had been duped into believing it was so that the view of Mount Fuji was not obscured, but wikipedia's Shizuoka Sensei (whose photo I have lovingly republished here) assures us that the reason for the missing section is because there is not enough room behind the stand to lay the necessary foundations to support the roof!

Before moving to Shimizu, my venue of choice was the Sydney Football Stadium, home of A-League misfits Sydney FC.

The stadium would have to be the subject of one of the most ridiculous arguments I've ever stumbled across; that being whether Sydney FC should play out of a ground located in the city centre, or whether they should move to a stadium in the suburbs, closer to the geographical centre of Sydney - one of the world's most sprawling cities.

Personally I think it's ludicrous to suggest that Sydney FC should play anywhere but in the heart of the city itself, but when Sydney FC fans are not donning their town planning hats, they're often maligning the stadium's frustrating roof. Heralded as an architectural masterpiece, the roof over the Sydney Football Stadium is everything that modern architecture should never be - nice to look at and completely useless. The roof is supposed to represent a wave, or something, and meanders up and down over the stands in an eye-catching manner. Unfortunately it also covers about 10% of the stands below, allowing the majority of the crowd to leave A-League games wet, since a Sydney FC home fixture is synonymous with wet weather in the Harbour city.

Before the advent of the A-League, the ground I frequented most often was Borussia Dortmund's legendary Westfalenstadion.

There are hardly enough superlatives to describe what is rightly considered one of the world's truly great football grounds. Dortmund's Südtribüne (pictured) - where I used to stand in Block 12, is Europe's largest standing terrace, and is packed with more than 25,000 of Dortmund's most vocal supporters on Bundesliga matchdays. When I used to attend games in 2000, the capacity of the Westfalenstadion was 63,000. That was increased to 80,000 (or 65,000 as an all-seater) as Dortmund hosted a semi-final at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, and these days Borussia Dortmund enjoy the highest average attendance of any club in Europe.

The stadium was originally built as a 40,000 capacity venue for the 1974 FIFA World Cup. With the capacity having doubled since those days, some Dortmund fans now complain that the atmosphere at the ground has been diluted, with half the fans in attendance simply there to enjoy the spectacle of one Europe's biggest crowds. Still, it's hard to look passed the Westfalen as a venerable temple of football, and it's generally regarded as one of the most intimidating venue in the Bundesliga, at least when frustrated Dortmund fans aren't jeering their own team.

These days stadiums built in the 20th Century seem to have passed their use-by-date. They are increasingly being replaced by stock-standard stadia built on the outskirts of town, far from commercial and residential areas, and the potential for social interaction that these areas encompass. It seems the days of enjoying a pint or two in pubs that line the route to the ground are numbered.

The question of what makes a great stadium is also subjective. Some talk about capacity, others prefer location, while others still mention the atmosphere created inside the ground. For me a great stadium entails all of those things. But I'm interested to hear what you think. Which do you consider to be the best stadium in world football?

Nihondaira Stadium

Sydney Football Stadium

Westfalenstadion

The performance of Sydney FC defender Mark Milligan, and to a lesser extent team-mate David Carney in Australia's 4-0 win over Thailand at the Asian Cup, has presented Australia coach Graham Arnold with somewhat of a quandry ahead of Australia's Asian Cup quarter-final clash with Japan.

West Ham defender Lucas Neill - who has endured a miserable tournament so far, returns from suspension, posing the question of who will partner Neill in defence - Milligan, or 1.FC Nürnberg stopper Michael Beauchamp.

Beauchamp has usurped Leicester City man Patrick Kisnorbo in the central defensive pecking order for Australia, although Beauchamp has at times looked shaky in an Australia jersey. He memorably came off the bench in the last minute of a friendly against Paraguay in Brisbane, and then promptly scored an equalising own goal, to send the crowd of 50,000 home in dismay.

Nevertheless Beauchamp turned in a solid performance against Thailand, even opening the scoring with his first ever goal for the national team - at the right end of the pitch, at any rate. Yet it was the performance of the small and agile Milligan that dominated the headlines.

Sydney FC coach Branko Culina has urged Milligan and Carney to consider their options in Australia, before rashly signing for one of Europe's lesser lights. Who could blame him? Culina obviously wants to keep his star players at the club, but in highlighting the fact that Milligan and Carney are both good enough to play for the national team, he has a valid argument.

Michael Beauchamp is a case in point. At Central Coast Mariners he was regarded as a defender with undoubted potential, but it took a move to the German Bundesliga for him to receive a serious look-in with the national team.

That no longer needs to be the case. Milligan and Carney's performance proves that if you are good enough, you should be in the team, regardless of where you play your club football. 

Of course one match is unlikely to be the basis of a monumental shift in attitude, but it has certainly given Australia coach Graham Arnold food for thought.

Sitting here in a lonely Bangkok Hotel, not far from Rajamangala Stadium where two nights ago I saw my national team Australia turn in arguably the worst performance I've seen in fifteen years of following their fortunes, I've been quietly pondering the content of my latest piece.

There were of course League Cup quarter-finals taking place in Japan last weekend - where Holger Osieck predictably fielded an ultra-conservative starting eleven, and then watched as Urawa gave up a one goal lead to draw 1-1 at home with Gamba Osaka. A couple of other teams recorded impressive victories - particularly Ventforet Kofu over Kawasaki Frontale, and Sanfrecce Hiroshima over Kashima Antlers, while FC Tokyo were the only team to win away from home, in front of a full house at Mitsuzawa against Yokohama F. Marinos.

Yet it was the announcement from a close friend of mine in Prague last week that ultimately fuelled my inspiration; FC Bohemians are back, and if Hollywood has lead me to believe anything, they're out for revenge.

When I was eighteen I suffered several traumas. I experienced my first true love, and then watched it slip away to the tyranny of distance. Much as I love German football, it was my German femme fatale who taught me several lessons. One was to cherish the things you love, because in an instant they could be gone. Tell that to the fans of SC Fortuna Köln - of which I was one, on the day they smashed local rivals 1.FC Köln 4-1 in the Müngersdorferstadion in March of 2000. There were 42,000 fans in the crumbling Müngersdorfer to witness that highly charged 2.Bundesliga clash - and only 1,000 were supporting the unfashionable club from the south side of Cologne.

These days SC Fortuna Köln exist in name only. They went bankrupt in 2005 - mainly thanks to the fact that the pockets of benefactor Jean Löring had finally run dry - but not until he had personally overseen the club's twenty-six year stay in the Second Division - the longest of any current German club. Löring died shortly after the team had been declared insolvent.

Not even Löring had been able to stave off the drop out of professional football anyway. I was in the Südstadion the day that Borussia Mönchengladbach's Michael Frontzeck thumped home a header that consigned Fortuna to the Third Division, and I doubt I'll ever forget the bitterness as I walked the streets of Zollstock on that cold afternoon.

That's why when my friend from Prague recently told me that Bohemians were back in the big time, I couldn't help but crack a wry smile. In fact, I was originally stunned. Like many, I had assumed that when the Traditionsverein dropped out of the Czech top flight in 2003, that would be the end of them. Indeed it was the end of them. FC Bohemians Praha, one of the most famous clubs in Czech football, went bankrupt.

But something happened in Vršovice. The fans got angry. They got so angry that their beloved team was about to disappear because of the workings of shady businessmen - the club at one stage had five dubious owners in just one year, that they raised the funds to keep Bohemians afloat. Not only were the club forced to tread water in the Second Division, they had to legally change their name just to do so.

And in 2007, on the back of an incredible eighteen match unbeaten streak, FC Bohemians achieved the unthinkable. They hauled themselves back from the brink. They booked a return to the big time. For the 2007-08 season, one of Czech football's most famous clubs will once again ply their trade in the Gambrinus Liga.

Of course no return from obscurity would be complete without some meddling from league officials. Bohemians have been informed that their beloved Ďolíček Stadion does not meet top flight requirements. No longer are fans allowed to stand behind the goals - apparently this causes a safety concern, although fans could travel a short distance across the border to German club Energie Cottbus and stand to their heart's content. Now Bohemians face costly ground renovations which will not only severely reduce the stadium's capacity, but which will no doubt take something away from the spirit of the ground.

But nothing can take away from the spirit of Bohemians fans. They saved this club. And in doing so, they should have struck fear into the hearts of all the Roman Abramovich's and Thaksin Shinawatra's in the world. Football is something that can not be bought and sold. It may be big business these days, but at the heart of the game remain the fans. And if the game continues to be supported by fans as loyal as Bohemians', then nothing can destroy it.

http://www.fc-bohemians.cz/default_en.asp

I, for one, was glad to see that Urawa's coach Holger Osieck was "unhappy" with the result from Sunday's 1-1 home draw with Yokohama F. Marinos - played in front of 51,829 fans at Saitama Stadium. He was certainly happy with the midweek 0-0 home draw with Sydney FC, which saw his side become the second Japanese team after Kawasaki Frontale to progress to the Champions League quarter-finals. That's probably because his team executed its game-plan almost to perfection; foul, defend, counter-attack, defend, foul, defend, counter-attack, defend. You get the idea.

For all the build up to the Urawa - Sydney FC clash, the match was a monumental anti-climax, as games that attract so much hype can often be. Sydney FC would have won but for some glaring misses in front of goal - David Zdrilic's failure to open the scoring with a free header midway through the second half may spell the end of his unhappy career with the club. Mark Milligan and David Carney also came desperately close for Sydney - although Urawa's Brazilian striker Washington could have undeservedly won the match for Urawa when he shot wide from sixteen yards in the last minute of the game.

There have been enough column inches written about the game itself without me having to rehash them, but as the Australian media is want to do, I couldn't help but chuckle at some of the deliberate misconceptions bandied about in the aftermath of this clash. Perhaps my favourite has been the Sydney Morning Herald's (surprise, surprise...one of Sydney FC's official sponsors!) consistent claim that the match was played in front of over 50,000 fans. Now I might have only scored 22% on my Higher School Certificate maths exam (hey, if I want to know how to do my tax...I'll call an accountant) but the last time I checked, a crowd of 44,793 was at least 5,207 fans short of the half-century mark. Why let facts stand in the way of an embellished story though, hey fellas?

It was also claimed in the Aussie media that the Urawa fans reserved a "special" atmosphere for Sydney FC. It sure was special - partly because it was Urawa's second-lowest attendance of the season, and partly because the atmosphere was about half that generated at a J-League game. In defence of the many Urawa fans who simply didn't turn up, I was personally surprised by just how far out of town Saitama Stadium actually is. With the Japanese tending to work late, it was no wonder that by the time the 7.30pm kick-off rolled around, thousands of fans were still streaming through the turnstiles and looking to take their seats. The horrendous traffic outside the ground didn't help, but of course with the match beamed live on TV throughout Asia, there was never a suggestion of delaying the kick-off to allow those fans to catch the entire ninety minutes of action.

It might be time for me to put my hand up and admit that I am bitter about the result from Wednesday night. Not just because I'm a Sydney FC fan - albeit a begrudging one, and not just because I dislike Urawa more than any other Japanese team. It's just that after thirty years of mistreatment by FIFA, shambolic administration and heart-breaking bad luck, it looked like Australian football had finally turned the corner and was starting to get what it deserved. I think if Sydney FC had qualified for the knock-out stages it would only have served to paper over the cracks at the club - but I certainly don't think that Urawa were the better team in the group. Sydney lead 2-0 after twenty minutes against Urawa in Sydney - before drawing 2-2, they lead 1-0 over Persik Kediri before losing 2-1 on a water-logged pitch in Solo City, and they drew 0-0 with Shanghai Shenhua in Sydney...with midfielder Ufuk Talay hitting the crossbar from a penalty - his first ever penalty miss for the club. Take maximum points from any of those fixtures and Sydney FC would have progressed.

As it is, it is the so-called "giants" of Asian football...with an imposing one J-League title to their name, who progress to the quarter-finals. According to Saburo Kawabuchi - head of the Japan Football Association, the AFC Champions League "should be more like the UEFA Champions League." I guess that's what we saw on Wednesday night. With a team that possesses an array of attacking talent such as Takahito Soma, Shinji Ono, Robson Ponte and the sulking hulking Washington, it's no wonder Urawa chose to sit back and defend for the entire ninety minutes. They were just trying to be more European...

So it's come down to this. Given the turmoil at Sydney FC prior to the start of their Asian Champions League campaign - with coach Terry Butcher given the sack and Branko Culina brought in as interim manager, it was difficult to envisage the Harbour City club unduly troubling the likes of Urawa Reds and Shanghai Shenhua United in their ACL group, right? Wrong.

Going into the final group game at Saitama Stadium on May 23, the 2005 A-League champions Sydney FC are still in with a chance of qualifying for the knock-out stages of the competition at their first attempt. They'd have been in prime position, had midfielder Ufuk Talay not crashed a penalty into the crossbar in Sydney's most recent 0-0 draw at home to Shanghai Shenhua.

That draw, coupled with Urawa's 3-3 draw with Persik Kediri in Indonesia means that the Japanese giants have nine points going into the final match, with Sydney FC just behind them on eight. Urawa can afford to draw in front of what should be a vociferous home crowd at Saitama Stadium, but Sydney FC will come at them with all guns blazing.

Urawa were stunned when these two clubs met at Aussie Stadium back in March, having seemingly underestimated the 2005 Australian champions, as they fell two goals behind after just twenty minutes. The J-League champions showed their mettle, however, more than matching Sydney for the rest of the game and roaring back thanks to strikes from Robson Ponte and Yuichiro Nagai. The latter arguably scored the easiest goal of his career in Sydney, and Clint Bolton's uncharacteristic handling error - he spilled a cross at the feet of Nagai, could come back to haunt the A-League giants.

Urawa, however, are under the pump in Japan. Rumours that several squad members don't see eye to eye with new coach Holger Osieck just won't go away. Despite the over-abundance of talent at his disposal, Osieck rarely makes changes to a team that has already made gruelling trips to Sydney, Shanghai and Solo City this season. As a result, Urawa have rarely looked their best in 2007.

Thus a fascinating battle should ensure between a club written off before this competition kicked off, against the over-hyped J-League champions. Before this competition commenced, Urawa loudly proclaimed their desire to become the first Japanese team to reach the quarter-finals of the Asian Champions League since the competition was revamped in 2003. They have already been beaten to that punch by Kawasaki Frontale, and with Sydney FC looking to do business in Saitama, there might just be another nasty surprise in store for the 2006 J-League champions Urawa.