TOKYO -- AC Milan forward Keisuke Honda and Borussia Dortmund midfielder Shinji Kagawa were named in Japan's 23-man squad on Wednesday for home friendlies against Honduras and Australia.
Japan's best-known players were joined by recalled veterans Yasuhito Endo, Atsuto Uchida and Yasuyuki Konno, who were all absent when the side were thrashed 4-0 by Brazil in Singapore last month.
Mainz striker Shinji Okazaki and Frankfurt midfielder Makoto Hasebe were also included in a squad heavy on experience.
Japan have won only one game under Mexican-born coach Javier Aguirre, 1-0 over Jamaica last month thanks to an own goal.
Aguirre's men face Honduras on Nov. 14 in Toyota, then Australia four days later in Osaka. They are using the matches to tune up for their defence of the Asian Cup, which begins on Jan. 9 in Australia.
Full squad:
Goalkeepers: Eiji Kawashima (Standard Liege), Shusaku Nishikawa (Urawa Reds), Masaaki Higashiguchi (Gamba Osaka).
Defenders: Masato Morishige (Tokyo), Kosuke Ota (Tokyo), Atsuto Uchida (Schalke), Maya Yoshida (Southampton), Tsukasa Shiotani (Sanfrecce Hiroshima), Gotoku Sakai (Stuttgart), Gen Shoji (Kashima Antlers), Ken Matsubara (Albirex Niigata).
Midfielders: Yasuhito Endo (Gamba Osaka), Yasuyuki Konno (Gamba Osaka), Makoto Hasebe (Eintracht Frankfurt), Shinji Kagawa (Borussia Dortmund), Taishi Taguchi (Nagoya Grampus), Gaku Shibasaki (Kashima Antlers).
Forwards: Yohei Toyoda (Sagan Tosu), Shinji Okazaki (Mainz), Keisuke Honda (AC Milan), Yu Kobayashi (Kawasaki Frontale), Takashi Inui (Eintracht Frankfurt), Yoshinori Muto (Tokyo).