Former Japan international Masato Kudo, a J-League champion who also had stints in Major League Soccer and Australia, has died aged 32 after a short illness.

The striker, who was now with Tegevajaro Miyazaki in Japan’s third tier, died on Friday having been in intensive care following brain surgery.

Kudo won the J-League with Kashiwa Reysol in 2011 and earned four caps for his country, scoring twice.

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