{"id":11987,"date":"2018-04-03T18:00:39","date_gmt":"2018-04-03T09:00:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/?p=11987"},"modified":"2018-04-03T23:27:58","modified_gmt":"2018-04-03T14:27:58","slug":"5-players-japan-made-impact-indian-football","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/2018\/04\/03\/5-players-japan-made-impact-indian-football\/","title":{"rendered":"5 players from Japan who have made an impact in Indian Football"},"content":{"rendered":"

1. Arata Izumi<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Arata Izumi arrived in India as a Japanese import in November 2006 to join East Bengal as a foreign player.<\/p>\n

The dynamic midfielder who played in India as a foreign player between 2006-2012 gained Indian citizenship on 24 August 2012 to be eligible to play for Indian National team due to his Indian roots from fathers side.<\/p>\n

The versatile midfielder had a reasonable debut season with East Bengal and had an injury-marred season with Mahindra United in the following 2007-08 season.<\/p>\n

Arata Izumi finally found his foot in Indian football when he joined newly promoted I-league side Pune FC.Arata showed his brilliance in the 2010 season, with his good first touch, dribbling skills and excellent technical ability to construct an attacking movement, retain possession in tight spaces and create space to penetrate defenses.<\/p>\n

Arata ended 2010 season with 10 goals and 10 assists in 26 games.Arata continued his good form in the following season with 6 goals and 9 assists in 24 games for Pune FC.<\/p>\n

In 2015 Arata joined Indian ISL side ATK and was inspirational in 11 games with 5 goals.Arata produced a stellar performance in the same season to coming off the bench as a substitute to score two late goals on 84th and 90+2 minutes to give ATK a crucial 3-2 away win against Kerala Blasters at Kochi.<\/p>\n

Arata surprisingly opted to play for NEROCA FC in the 2016-17 season in the I-League second division to “remain visible” in the ISL bidding process.<\/p>\n

He was bought by Kerala Blasters in the 6th round of ISL players draft. But the 35-year-old had a below-par season with Kerala Blasters as Arata was forced to play in an unfamiliar position as a defensive midfielder.<\/p>\n

Having spent close to 12 years in Indian domestic football and represented Indian National team in 9 appearances in 2014 AFC Challenge Cup and 2013 SAFF Championship, Arata Izumi is definitely one of the top players to have arrived from Japan to have an impact on Indian football.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

2. Katsumi Yusa<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Katsumi Yusa hails from Fukushima and has been fondly named as the “Fukushima Bomber” by the Indian media is known for his explosive run down the middle and the flanks.Katsumi Yusa is a proven goalscorer and has been the midfield engine-room for teams like ONGC, Mohun Bagan and East Bengal in his 7 years in Indian football.<\/p>\n

His relentless energy powered by his iron lungs allows his to run unfatigued throughout 90-minutes box to box. His work-rate in any game is unparalleled, pushing the team in quick counter attacks to inject pace and power as well as drop deep down into his own half when his team is penned back in defense to assist the backline or throw in crucial tackles to intercept final passes in the attacking third.<\/p>\n

Katsumi came to the limelight in Indian football while playing for ONGC making 51 appearances. During 2013 season of I league playing against Mohun Bagan at Kalyani stadium, Katsumi ran the Mohun Bagan defense ragged but ONGC lost 3-1. This performance helped Katsumi sign a deal with Mohun Bagan in the following season.<\/p>\n

Katsumi had a successful tenure with Mohun Bagan winning the Hero I league in 2015 and Federation Cup in the 2015-16 season.<\/p>\n

Katsumi spent a year in 2016 with ISL side North East United and made 14 appearances. Katsumi joined arch-rivals East Bengal for the 2017-18 from Mohun Bagan and scored 6 goals from 18 appearances.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

3. Ryuji Sueoka<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"Ryuji Sueoka started his playing career with J1 side Albirex Niigata club making 22 appearances between 2002 and 2005. Sueoka played in clubs like Albirexs Niigata Singapore, Bangkok United before signing for Mohun Bagan AC in the 2009-10 season.<\/p>\n

He had an impressive season with the Mariners scoring 5 goals in 7 matches. Known for his vision and excellent ball distribution; he was a midfield maestro controlling the game from the center, creating spaces for himself and forward line.<\/p>\n

In the subsequent seasons, Sueoka played for Salgaocar SC,Dempo, East Bengal and Pune FC. In 2011, he was awarded as the \u201cBest Player of I-League” and is fondly remembered by Indian football fans for his exquisite first touch and defense threading passes.<\/p>\n

After retiring, Suoeka now collects worn our football boots from all over Japan and fixes them before sending them to underprivileged children in India…a truly remarkable player and human being, Ryuji Sueoka will be remembered in India for his down to earth demeanor and impact both on and off the pitch.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

4. Taisuke Matsugae<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Taisuke who played for Blaublitz Akita in the J3 League for the Akita based side played in 150 matches scoring 20 goals.On January 17, 2013 Shillong Lajong announced the signing of the Japanese midfielder.<\/p>\n

Known for his penetrating passes in the final third, organizing the shape of the team off the ball and making the hard tackles in the center, Taisuke was a key figure in the Lajong’s midfield.<\/p>\n

In the tough away game against Kolkata and Goa side, Taisuke’s leadership and tactical awareness in the center was invaluable for Lajong’s success.<\/p>\n

Taisuke played 31 games for Shillong Lajong during the 2013-14 season scoring 4 goals and was instrumental in Lajong’s midfield role.<\/p>\n

Following season (2014-15), Taisuke moved to Mumbai FC scoring 3 goals from 26 appearances where his goal against Pune FC from halfway line was one of the best goals of the I-League season.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

5. Yuta Kinowaki<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Yuta Kinowaki started his youth career with Kyoto Sanga and moved to India during the 2015-16 season to join newly promoted side Aizawl FC. Following a season in Shillong Lajong, Yuta Kinowaki joined Mohun Bagan AC as a replacement for fellow Japanese midfielder Katsumi Yusa during the 2017-18 season<\/p>\n

His performance in the derby win against East Bengal was hugely lauded by Pundits where in the midfield battle with compatriot Katsumi Yusa, Yuta Kinowaki did not get overwhelmed by the occasion playing in his first Kolkata derby against East Bengal.<\/p>\n

He managed himself well in the season despite suffering a collarbone fracture in his second game against Churchill Brothers.<\/p>\n

Back from injury, Yuta continued from where he left in the central midfield role. Yuta was instrumental in orchestrating Mohun Bagan’s midfield play to intercept opposition passes in midfield, absorbs the pressure and find his way out of congested patches.<\/p>\n

Yuta doesn’t have the pace of Katsumi but is an intelligent footballer who uses his clever passing skills, composure in keeping possessions and knitting the team together while exploiting gaps in opponent\u2019s defensive structure.<\/p>\n

With the upcoming Super Cup to showcase his talent against bigger ISL teams, Yuta Kinowaki could entertain Indian fans with his skill and intelligence in the central midfield on a bigger stage.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

1. Arata Izumi Arata Izumi arrived in India as a Japanese import in November 2006 to join East Bengal as a foreign player. The dynamic midfielder who played in India as a foreign player between 2006-2012 gained Indian citizenship on 24 August 2012 to be eligible to play for Indian National team due to his Indian roots from fathers side. The versatile midfielder had a reasonable debut season with East Bengal and had an injury-marred season with Mahindra United in the following 2007-08 season. Arata Izumi finally found his foot in Indian football when he joined newly promoted I-league side Pune FC.Arata showed his brilliance in the 2010 season, with … Continue reading “5 players from Japan who have made an impact in Indian Football”<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":90,"featured_media":11989,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[1372,1290,205,57,1371,1370,95,1369,1368],"class_list":["post-11987","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-india","tag-arata-izumi","tag-hero-i-league","tag-india","tag-japan","tag-katsumi-yusa","tag-ryuji-sueoka","tag-slider","tag-taisuke-matsugae","tag-yuta-kinowaki"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11987","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/90"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11987"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11987\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11989"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11987"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11987"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/football-tribe.com\/asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11987"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}