Lee Kang-in, the coach of the Korean national team who will surpass Kubo, also praised the player who will take responsibility for the future → The youngest possible debut in Samurai Blue history appears
Mar 03, 2025
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Japan's Higashi SpoWeb reported on the 2nd (Korea time) 'Moriyasu mentioned 15-year-old player Maki Kitahara who made his debut in FC Tokyo'
Winger Kitahara, born in 2009, is one of the most surprising talents in Japanese soccer in recent years. Kitahara, who was called up from the U-15 (under-15) team to the senior team in February, made the bench list against Nagoya on February 26. In the fourth round against Kashima, he made his debut as a substitute and made his Japanese first division debut at the age of 15. Japanese media admired Kitahara's debut, saying, `It is surprising that a junior high school student will play in the first division.'
Kitahara's debut was attributed to Japan's revitalization of the home-grown system. 'Homegrown' refers to a player whose total number of days registered in a particular club's Class 1 to Class 4 teams is more than 990 (3 seasons) during the period from the year of his 12th birthday to the year of his 21st birthday. The J-League requires more than a certain number of players to register 'home-grateful', and in the 2025 season, there are four players in the first division and two players in the second and third divisions.
Kitahara, who was listed as a substitute through Homegrown, was put in the 38th minute of the second half of the fourth round match against Kashima and set the record for the youngest participation (15 years, 7 months and 22 days) in J-League history. The previous record was 15 years, 10 months, and 6 days set by Takayuki Morimoto in the past. He also broke the record of Kubo Takefusa (16 years, 5 months and 22 days), the youngest record holder for the club.
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Coach Hajime is a coach who has decided to select Kubo, who was only 18 years old in the past. Since his selection at the time, Kubo has steadily increased his chances to play and established himself as the best talent in the Japanese national team. At the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, he was the only player born in the 2000s for the Japanese national team. If Kitahara is recognized for his talent by coach Hajime, he can fully expect to get on board the national team as quickly as Kubo.
However, it is not easy for Kitahara's talent to be selected for the Japanese national team right away. The most competitive position in the Japanese national team is a winger with European players, including Gubo. In order for Kitahara to be able to compete against them, it is most important to play consistently from this season.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
