Japanese veteran on short-term loan to Sydney

J-League second-division club Yokohama FC will loan its veteran striker Kazuyoshi Miura to the A-League's Sydney FC from 7 November to 31 January 2006. The club said, however, the short-term deal could be scrapped as a condition of the contract if the team, which is now languishing in 11th place in the 12-team second-division, earns a playoff berth in a bid for promotion to the first division. Sydney FC is coached by Pierre Littbarski, who served as Yokohama FC manager in the 2003 and 2004 seasons.

Miura, a 38-year-old former national team star, is expected to play for Sydney FC at the FIFA Club World Championship to be staged in December in the absence of any teams from host Japan. "I would like to learn many new things and use my experience in soccer to the fullest," Miura said, as quoted by The Japan Times. He will travel to Australia after a match against Avispa Fukuoka on Thursday.