Keisuke Honda went back on his retirement to sign for a team in Bhutan (Image: GETTY)
A former hero known for his incredible free-kicks came out of retirement to play one more game for a club in Bhutan.Keisuke Honda is recognised as one of Japan’s greatest players and emerged as a cult hero after signing for CSKA Moscow in 2010. He also had a productive spell at , scoring 11 goals in 92 games across all competitions.Honda also excelled at international level, representing his country at three World Cups. He was also part of the Japan squad that won the Asian Cup in 2011, with his influential displays seeing him voted Player of the Tournament.
Honda represented Japan at three World Cups and played for AC Milan (Image: GETTY)
The midfielder went on to play for clubs in Australia, the Netherlands and eastern Europe before trying his hand at management. He took charge of Cambodia in 2021 but left the role following their AFF Championship elimination just over 12 months later.Earlier this year, Honda made a surprise return to football by signing a one-game contract with Bhutani club Paro FC. He joined the team for their AFC Challenge League match against Church Boys United, a club from Nepal, in August., Paro said: “Having a player of Honda’s calibre join us is not only a tremendous honour, but also a significant opportunity for growth and development.”His wealth of experience and expertise, having played not only for Japan’s national team but also renowned clubs such as AC Milan, will undoubtedly elevate our performance on the field and inspire our players to reach new heights.”
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Honda, meanwhile, added: “This is a unique opportunity to bring my experience to a new environment and help the team achieve its goals.”Competing in the AFC Challenge League is an exciting prospect and I look forward to working with my new teammates and the passionate fans of Paro FC.”The move certainly had the desired impact, with Honda captaining Paro to a narrow 2-1 victory over Church Boys. After the final whistle, there were scenes of wild celebration as the Japanese icon was hoisted into the air by his new team-mates.It was not all fun and games, though, with Honda left furious at the state of the pitch in Nepal as well as the training facilities allocated to Paro.He said: “I felt like a joke was going on here. When we reached the training ground, there were hundreds of people cutting grass. The match field is not comparable to the fields I have played on before.”