Keisuke Honda, a soccer player, was born on June 13, 1986, in Osaka Prefecture. He began playing soccer in the second grade of elementary school with a local club in Settsu. In junior high school, he joined the Gamba Osaka Junior Youth team, playing alongside Akihiro Ienaga and Masahiro Yasuda. However, his lack of stamina and speed prevented him from being promoted to the youth team, so he went on to Seiryo High School in Ishikawa Prefecture. At Seiryo, he finished second in the Takamadonomiya Trophy All-Japan Youth Championship in his first year. In his third year, he became the first Ishikawa Prefecture team to reach the semi-finals of the All Japan High School Soccer Championship. After graduating from high school, he joined Nagoya Grampus Eight. He started in the opening game and made a great performance, including providing an assist. The following year, he became a regular player. In 2005, he was called up to the U-20 Japan national team for the FIFA World Youth Championship. In 2007, he was selected for the Japanese national team at the Beijing Olympics, contributing as a key player to the team's Olympic qualification. In January 2008, he transferred to VVV-Venlo in the Dutch first division. In his second season, the 2008-09 season, he played in 36 league games as a key player for the team. He scored 16 goals and provided 13 assists, helping the team win the second division and return to the first division. He also won the league MVP award.
On December 31, 2009, he transferred to CSKA Moscow in the Russian first division. In 2010, he played in the Champions League for the first time, and later helped the team reach the Champions League quarterfinals, becoming the first team in the club's history, the first Russian league team, and the first Japanese player to do so. That same year, he played the full 90 minutes in all four games at the FIFA World Cup in South Africa. His outstanding performance quickly drew attention, and he dominated the Japanese national team's Asian Cup in 2011. He contributed to Japan's first Asian championship in two tournaments and was named the tournament's MVP.
On December 11, 2013, he transferred to AC Milan in the Italian Serie A. His first season with the club was disappointing, as he struggled to get playing time. However, he is determined to use these challenges as motivation for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, and has publicly stated for some time that he is serious about becoming the best in the world. He is one of the players who is attracting attention from around the world.
