http://ameblo.jp/eiji-kawashima/entry-11301634103.html Kawashima states that he signed with Standard on 7/12/2012.
http://www.standard.be/toutes-les-news/lire/~eiji-kawashima-au-standard.htm?lng=fr#.UAVyzZFKzTo Official.
No actually they never made it to qualifications amongst Belgian teams those were Genk Gent Lokeren And as an interesting fact Lokern who go to Europa League Qualifications through winning Belgium Cup did so by winning over Lierse in the semi final So yeah While this move is a move up, its definitely a small one
It will be a good one if Standard will win the next Jupiler League or at least qualify for UCL/EL matches. If so (w/o any other transfer) Eiji will have a good experience before the WC2014.
29th july??? That's strange... Well he will be ready for the next Confederation Cup first than any other mates.
Taking a goal on the first day is not really the same as being a bad keeper, you can't judge Eiji's performance just by the scoreline- it's natural for a keeper to get scored against, and 90% of the times it doesn't depend on him alone... Unless you watched the game and saw him having a bad day- in that case, I take my words back.
Yeah, if standard had won 3 to 1 or something like that he probably would have been considered successful. Look at his tenure at Lierse: their offense was easily worst in the league but Kawashima probably saved them from relegation. seem's more like the fault of the attackers more than anything else.
That's why I expect only the best from a gk like him. 1 goal in the first day it's a pity, but I know that probably it's not his fault and he will do well in this season to Liege. Highlights: It seems It was not his fault. A huge gap in the defence made by his team mates during a corner and a head shot impossible to stop. Two good saves in the first half, another two in the second half. I hope Standard play will improve in the next match, Eiji need to do some Europa/Champions League experience (imo).
You can't judge a team's season by two games alone. Last J.League season, for example, started with Nagoya smashed 3-0 by Urawa Reds and Gamba Osaka losing 4-1 to Sanfrecce. This doesn't reflect much on the final rankings, am I right? The games in Belgium have just begun, and I feel like it's WAY too early to make any bold statement such as yours!
Do you mean is he a starter? If so, then yes. He's started all their games so far this season. Might change later though as their first choice from last season, Sinan Bolat is out with a cruciate injury and won't be back until December at the least. So Kawashima has a couple of months to prove that he has what it takes to be first choice.