The Bedroom Soccer Scout

  Date of birth: 30 July 1997 Country: Japan Position: Right Midfield, Right Wing back Height: 178cm  Preferred foot: Left Club: Consadole Sapporo (On loan at Dinamo Zagreb) The J League is a goldmine for the casual fan wanting to see high amount of goals per game, technical players running with the ball, long shots and generally great football. A huge part of that is the players of course and one of my personal favourites in recent years is Consadole's Takuro Kaneko. Coming into professional football from University, a path that is very common in Japan, he adapted to life in the J League with ease, becoming  a key man for Consadole Sapporro which earned him a loan move to Croatian side Dinamo Zagreb where he won 3 trophies in one season and quickly became  a fan favourite. Watching him play, it is easy to see why.  A player that can play in a variety of positions, Kaneko's main position is running up the right wing. Kaneko has a fantastic play style that catche...

  Date of birth: 22 November 2000 Country: Japan Position: Goalkeeper Height: 190cm Preferred foot: Right Club: Machida Zelvia Japanese football has always been entertaining to watch, from players like Shunsuke Nakamura to Hidetoshi Nakata and from Shinji Kagawa to Keisuke Honda making a vast impression to football fans all over the world, the technical side has always been clear, however there has been a glaring problem in Japanese football for decades now, and that is the lack of a solid Goalkeeper. However, with Kosei Tani shining, that problem could be solved. Contracted to Gamba Osaka and currently on loan to 2024's surprise package Machida Zelvia, Kosei has been a star performer for the J League's league leaders. Starting all 16 league games so far this season, Tani has notched up 6 clean sheets whilst posting a very respectful 2.1 saves at an accuracy rate of 72%. For comparison to Celtic's Joe Hart , Tani has a better save percentage (72% vs 68%) which is impressive...

  Date of birth:  29 May 1998 Country: Japan Position: Central Midfielder/ Defensive Midfield Height: 168cm Preferred foot: Right Club: Kawasaki Frontale Midfielders in the modern day compared to the previous era's look vastly different. There is a lot more work, a lot more pressing to go with the traditional skills. Although many midfielders have adapted to the change, many have not, however in the J league the box to box midfielder is the norm and I don't think there are many more that standout than Kawasaki Frontale's Kento Tachibanada. Captain Kento has been with Kawasaki since 2020 having followed in the path of many Japanese players by coming into professional football directly from university. Having being made captain in 2023 he has cemented himself as first choice on the team sheet for the successful J league club. In his first season with the club he made 32 appearances helping the club win it's first J league title and his performances on the pitch have only ...