Back in 1998, Takeshi Okada provoked one of the most talked about moments in the history of Japanese football.

His decision, in the lead-up to the World Cup in France, to leave legendary striker Kazuyoshi Miura at home for the country's first-ever appearance at the game's greatest tournament still haunts Okada.

Even today, the man with the professorial demeanour - and who again this year leads the Japanese team to the World Cup - is asked about the reasoning behind his decision to leave Japan's football pioneer at home.

Miura: A legend in Japan

Miura was - and is - a legend in Japan. At the age of 16, he boarded a plane to Brazil to learn how to play la joga bonita, eventually donning the Santos shirt made famous around the world by Pele, and all this in an era when football was of little consequence in baseball- and sumo-obsessed Japan.

Upon his return, he became the shining star in the newly created J.League galaxy, wooing huge crowds for Verdy Kawasaki before going on his travels again, becoming the first Japanese to play in Serie A when he joined Genoa.

Miura - or 'King Kazu' as the Japanese renamed him - had been on of the stars of the show when Japan narrowly missed out on a place at the 1994 World Cup but he was in the squad as Okada led the country to the finals four years later.

But he was not to make it onto the plane to Paris, Okada choosing to pick his squad based on form rather than on sentiment. The controversy over that decision continues to this day.

Twelve years on, Okada has proven emotion has little place in his decision making process as he named Japan's squad for the 2010 World Cup finals on Monday.

Many of the expected names were there, but the one glaring absence was that of Shinji Ono, the UEFA Cup-winning midfielder who returned to his homeland from Germany at the turn of the year in the hope of securing a place on his fourth World Cup squad.

No place for Ono

Ono has featured little for the national team since the 2006 finals and Okada is known for his safety first approach - the coach has remained faithful to those players in whom he has placed his loyalty throughout his tenure.

But the recent form of the ex-Feyenoord and Urawa Reds midfielder has been such that his current club, Shimizu S-Pulse, lead the J.League standings and Ono has had a major hand in their ascent to the summit.

Okada, however, has chosen to ignore those claims and instead has stuck with a midfield that lacks leadership, if not talent. The performances since the turn of the year have proven that the Japanese are missing the drive and determination that Ono may have brought.

However, Ono's omission is not of the magnitude of Miura's and Okada has at least turned to one of Japan's old school, handing Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi the third goalkeeper's spot despite having not played at all this season due to injury.

That, as with all of Okada's decisions, was a pragmatic choice and there is little doubt Ono will feel more than a little aggrieved at the decision. If he ever feels the need to talk about it, Kazu Miura will no doubt lend a sympathetic ear.