Zico waits on Kaji fitness

Japan coach Zico continues to sweat over the fitness of right wing-back Akira Kaji as the clock ticks down to his side’s World Cup opener against Australia.

The Asian champions meet Guus Hiddink’s Socceroos on Monday in Kaiserslautern and the Gamba Osaka defender is in a race against time to recover from an ankle injury sustained in a tackle by Bastian Schweinsteiger in Japan’s 2-2 draw with hosts Germany last week.

Kaji’s injury is the most pressing concern for the Brazilian manager as Atsushi Yanagisawa and Alessandro Santos, as well as Naohiro Takahara, have now recovered and should be available for selection.

“I’m not too concerned about Yanagisawa or Alex,” said Zico. “The player I am most worried about is Kaji. He says his foot still hurts but we won’t know exactly where he stands until after the next medical.”