Japan coach Akira Nishino has defended his decision to include three of Japan’s most recognizable players Keisuke Honda, Shinji Kagawa and Shinji Okazaki in the 27-Man squad for their Pre-World Cup friendly against Ghana.

The trio looked in danger of missing out altogether after being used sparingly by former coach Halilhodzic during the qualifiers, but Nishino believes the so-called “Big Three” still have much to offer.

“You need players who can perform on the big stage,“You can’t have players who freeze — players who tense up or can’t make the right decisions in the big games. If you choose players like that, there’s no way you will win.”

The Blue Samurais will face Black Stars in Yokohama on May 30, with Nishino set to trim his squad to 23 for the June 14-July 15 World Cup the following day.

Here is Japan’s full 27-man squad:

Goalkeepers: Eiji Kawashima (Metz); Masaaki Higashiguchi (Gamba Osaka); Kosuke Nakamura (Kashiwa Reysol).

Defenders: Yuto Nagatomo (Galatasaray); Tomoaki Makino, Wataru Endo (Urawa Reds); Maya Yoshida (Southampton); Hiroki Sakai (Marseille); Gotoku Sakai (Hamburg); Gen Shoji, Naomichi Ueda (Kashima Antlers).

Midfielders: Makoto Hasebe (Eintracht Frankfurt); Toshihiro Aoyama (Sanfrecce Hiroshima); Keisuke Honda (Pachuca); Takashi Inui (Eibar); Shinji Kagawa (Dortmund); Hotaru Yamaguchi (Cerezo Osaka); Genki Haraguchi, Takashi Usami (Fortuna Dusseldorf); Gaku Shibasaki (Getafe); Ryota Oshima (Kawasaki Frontale); Kento Misao (Kashima Antlers); Yosuke Ideguchi (Leonesa).

Forwards: Shinji Okazaki (Leicester); Yuya Osako (Werder Bremen); Yoshinori Muto (Mainz); Takuma Asano (Stuttgart).

By Daraja Mutari/Ghanaguardian.com