Masashi Nakayama

is a professional football (soccer) for Jubilo Iwata of the J. League, the top professional football league in Japan. Born in Shizuoka Prefecture, Nakayama attended Fujieda, Shizuoka and Tsukuba University before he joined Jubilo Iwata of the Japan Football League, a precursor to the J. League, which consisted of company sponsored teams.

Career

Playing as a striker, Nakayama made his J. League debut on March 11, 1994. Since that time, he has been an ever-present part of the Jubilo lineup as they have consistently been one of the top teams in the J. League since its inception. With a strikerate of more than a goal every two games throughout his career, Nakayama is the inspirational and talismanic leader for both Jubilo Iwata and the Japan national football team.

At the 1998 FIFA World Cup finals in France, Nakayama scored the only goal of the tournament and the first goal for Japan in the history of the World Cup against Jamaica national football team on June 26, 1998. As of 2003, he has scored 21 goals in 53 appearances for the Japanese national team, which places him 5th all-time among goalscorers for his country.

Nakayama also holds the world record fastest hat-trick at international level. He managed three goals in a FIFA World Cup qualification match against Brunei national football team on 16 February 2000 in only three minutes and three seconds, beating the previous record of Englishman George William Hall set in 1938 (against Northern Ireland national football team) by 27 seconds. This striker becomes a record-holder with other hat-tricks, that he did it in four successive games of J.League, from April 15 to April 29 in 1998. He scored 16 times in these games.

Affectionately known as Gon, Nakayama is a fan favorite among many casual Japanese football fans for his outspoken and humorous nature. Now in the twilight of his career, injuries and age have taken a toll on Nakayama's skills but he still remains a favorite of the Jubilo faithful, as evidenced by the fact that he draws the loudest cheers by far from the home crowd at Yamaha Corporation Stadium when his name is announced during warm-ups or when he comes on as a substitute.

National team

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Honors and awards

Individual Honors

- J. League Most Valuable Player: 1998
- J. League Top Scorer: 1998, 2000
- J. League Best Eleven: 1997, 1998, 2000, 2002

Team Honors

- FIFA Confederations Cup Runner-up: 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup
- (Champions)
- AFC Champions League Champions: AFC Champions League 1999
- Asian Super Cup Champions: 1999
- J. League Champions: 1997, 1999, 2002