Shunsuke Nakamura (中村 俊輔, Nakamura Shunsuke?, born 24 June 1978 in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture) is a Japanese footballer who currently plays for Yokohama F. Marinos in J. League Division 1. He is one of the most prominent and successful Asian players to have played in Scotland and on 13 September 2006 became the first Japanese player to score in the UEFA Champions League and the fourth Asian player after South Koreans Cha Bum-Kun and Park Ji-Sung, and Iranian Ali Daei. He is also well known for his free kick-taking abilities. Asteroid 29986 Shunsuke is also named in his honour.
He has won the AFC Asian Cup in 2000 and 2004 with the Japanese national football team, and was named Most Valuable Player in the 2004 competition. He has also appeared in the 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship, and the 2000 Summer Olympics as a member of the Japanese Under-23 team.
In his first season with Celtic, Nakamura helped the club win the Scottish Premier League and Scottish League Cup. He has scored 23 goals for Japan. His former clubs include Espanyol and Reggina. He moved to Celtic on 25 July 2005 for a fee of around £2.75 million.
Read more about Shunsuke Nakamura: Early Years, Achievements, Career Statistics, Personal Life