Sitting pretty … Western Sydney's Shinji Ono at Parramatta. Photo: Wolter Peeters
A HUGE smile crosses Shinji Ono's face, and he pauses excitedly to try out the diction he's clearly been practising in front of a mirror: ''No worries … mate!''
Corny though it might seem, his enthusiasm infectious. While he probably never dreamed of visiting Australia for anything but a holiday, Ono is delighted to put in the hard yards as the face of the Western Sydney Wanderers.
He's the game changer for the start-up club in more ways than one. Remember, this was the team where the boss, Lyall Gorman, pledged there would be no marquee players because it didn't fit with the community ethos of the club.
Then Alessandro Del Piero wandered into Sydney FC, and the world went upside-down. The Wanderers and their owners, Football Federation Australia, hastily rewrote their own rules.
They too wanted a marquee who could deliver a real punch - but at a bargain price. In Ono, it looks as though they got it right. The 33-year-old showed glimpses in his first few weeks and has recently started to demonstrate why he is still a star in his home country.
''The past few months, I've had a nice time since arriving, and everything is perfect. The football? I love it,'' he says. ''If I can keep training every day, I'll soon get to 100 per cent fitness. Then I'll show people my skill.''
How Ono became available to the A-League was a confluence of factors, not all of them positive. Ono had fallen out with manager Afshin Ghotbi at Shimizu S-Pulse, and wasn't getting a run. Questions grew about his knees.
''In my career I've had nothing with my knees until the last few months,'' he says. ''Then I had some knee problems, yes, but it's not too bad. I have nothing now, not one problem with them. They're good for playing.''
This is the first time Ono has lived in an English-speaking country, and it is no surprise he is still coming to grips with the language.
''If you speak slowly to me I'll understand, but people normally speak very fast, so it's difficult,'' he says. ''I'm OK with my teammates, I think. But you would have to ask them if they understand me.''
Ono could have switched from Shimizu to another J-League team and earned millions in his home country but he doesn't regret coming to Sydney. He's settled in quickly, finding a place close to where the Wanderers play. He's even savvy enough to shop where FFA chairman Frank Lowy might approve. ''I really enjoy life here. Everything OK,'' he says. ''I like that there's a lot of Japanese restaurants in the city, and I've found a nice restaurant close to where I live near Parramatta Stadium. I found a great shopping centre, too: Westfield.''
The sole regret seems to be an issue he knows well. For the second time, he's left his wife and family at home in Japan. They didn't join him on his two-year spell with German club Bochum in 2008 - his second stint in Europe - and have again remained behind.
''That's the only problem,'' he says. ''I'm married with two daughters, and I miss them every day. I live here, they live in Tokyo, and it's very hard. My wife said: 'I want to live together in Japan but if you want to play in the A-League, I'm happy.' They came to visit me [a few weeks ago], and she's happy with [the arrangement].''
By his own admission, Ono ''wasn't too sure'' about the A-League before he arrived, recalling only patches of when he played against Sydney FC for Urawa Red Diamonds in the Asian Champions League in 2007.
''But I had some teammates from Australia, Alex Brosque and Eddy Bosnar [who, like Ono, have also left Japan], and they gave me some good information,'' he says. ''When I played against Sydney, I could see they had some quality, so I had some idea.''
Just as Del Piero and Emile Heskey have been asked about the level of the A-League, it's only fair the question is posed to Ono.
"It's a big difference between Japan and here in Australia. Here the players are very strong. It's a tough, tough league,'' he says. ''You have to use more skill in Japan. The A-League is sometimes … physical, sometimes skilful, sometimes dynamic.''
Former Feyenoord teammate Pascal Bosschaart, now at Sydney FC, described Ono as ''the most skilful player I've ever played with''. Bosschaart says Ono was so big in Japan that a television show was once dedicated to his dogs. Ono says all that has changed since he moved here.
''That's OK,'' he laughs. ''I'm happy to make some new fans.''
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