Ko Itakura (板倉 滉, Itakura Kō, born 27 January 1997) is a Japanese professional footballer who plays as centre-back or defensive midfielder for Bundesliga club Borussia Mönchengladbach and the Japan national team.[3]
 Itakura with Vegalta Sendai in 2018 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ko Itakura[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 27 January 1997[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Yokohama, Japan | ||
| Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Centre-back, defensive midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Borussia Mönchengladbach | ||
| Number | 3 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2006–2014 | Kawasaki Frontale | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2015–2018 | Kawasaki Frontale | 7 | (0) |
| 2015 | → J. League U-22 (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| 2018 | → Vegalta Sendai (loan) | 24 | (3) |
| 2019–2022 | Manchester City | 0 | (0) |
| 2019–2021 | → FC Groningen (loan) | 56 | (1) |
| 2021–2022 | → Schalke 04 (loan) | 31 | (4) |
| 2022– | Borussia Mönchengladbach | 54 | (4) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2013 | Japan U16 | 2 | (0) |
| 2015–2017 | Japan U20 | 8 | (1) |
| 2018–2021 | Japan U23 | 24 | (6) |
| 2019– | Japan | 35 | (2) |
Medal record | |||
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 9 November 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 19 November 2024 | |||
Club career
editBorn in Yokohama, Itakura joined J1 League club Kawasaki Frontale in 2015, with which he won the 2017 Japanese championship.[citation needed]
He was loaned to Vegalta Sendai in 2018.[citation needed]
In January 2019, he joined Premier League club Manchester City and was immediately loaned to Eredivisie club Groningen, until the summer of 2020.[4] On 24 July 2020, his stay with Groningen was extended with one more year after both clubs agreed.[5]
On 19 August 2021, Itakura signed a season-long loan deal with 2. Bundesliga club Schalke 04 with an option to make the move permanent for £5 million.[6] At the end of the season, he was promoted to the Bundesliga with Schalke, but the club did not activate the option due to financial reasons.[7]
On 2 July 2022, he returned to Germany and signed permanently with Bundesliga club Borussia Mönchengladbach for a €5 million transfer fee.[citation needed]
On August 19 2023, he scored his first goal in the Bundesliga against Augsburg, and on September 2, he scored a goal against Bayern Munich, which had the most wins and were the champions of the previous year.[8] On September 8th, he was selected as the team's MVP for August.[9]
International career
editIn May 2017, Itakura was called up to the Japan U-20 national team for the 2017 U-20 World Cup. At this tournament, he played 2 matches as defensive midfielder.[citation needed]
He was selected for the senior Japan national football team for 2019 Copa América and made his debut on 20 June 2019 in the game against Uruguay, as a starter.[10]
On March 29, 2021, he scored two goals against the Argentina national under-24 football team, and was also selected to represent Japan at the Tokyo Olympics, finishing in 4th place.[11]
In November 2022, he was selected for the 2022 FIFA World Cup Japan National team for the first time.[12] Participated in all group stage matches and became the first Asian team to win first place in an overseas World Cup group league, contributing to advance to the final tournament for two consecutive tournaments. His long ball was the starting point of the come-from-behind goal against Germany. He was also named in the first group stage best eleven by Spain's 'Marca' and Italy's version of 'Sky Sports'.[13] The former named him one of the players to double his value in the World Cup and described him as "the most consistent performance of the entire tournament".[14]
On March 28, 2023, he served as captain for the first time in the second match of the second term of Moriyasu Japan against Colombia.[15]
Career statistics
editClub
edit| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Continental[c] | Other[d] | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Kawasaki Frontale | 2015 | J1 League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2016 | J1 League | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 | ||
| 2017 | J1 League | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | – | 15 | 1 | ||
| Total | 7 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 22 | 1 | ||
| Vegalta Sendai (loan) | 2018 | J1 League | 24 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | – | – | 32 | 3 | ||
| Manchester City | 2018–19 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | |
| Groningen (loan) | 2018–19 | Eredivisie | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2019–20 | Eredivisie | 22 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | – | – | 23 | 0 | ||||
| 2020–21 | Eredivisie | 34 | 1 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 1 | 0 | 36 | 1 | |||
| Total | 56 | 1 | 2 | 0 | – | – | 1 | 0 | 59 | 1 | ||||
| Schalke 04 (loan) | 2021–22 | 2. Bundesliga | 31 | 4 | 1 | 0 | – | – | – | 32 | 4 | |||
| Borussia Mönchengladbach | 2022–23 | Bundesliga | 24 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | – | – | 25 | 0 | |||
| 2023–24 | Bundesliga | 20 | 3 | 2 | 0 | – | – | – | 22 | 3 | ||||
| 2024–25 | Bundesliga | 10 | 1 | 2 | 1 | – | – | – | 12 | 2 | ||||
| Total | 54 | 4 | 5 | 1 | – | – | – | 59 | 5 | |||||
| Career total | 172 | 12 | 18 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 204 | 14 | ||
- ^ Includes Emperor's Cup, KNVB Cup
- ^ Includes J.League Cup
- ^ Includes AFC Champions League
- ^ Includes J1 League Championship, Eredivisie European play-offs
International
edit- As of match played 19 November 2024[20]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japan | 2019 | 3 | 0 |
| 2020 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2021 | 1 | 1 | |
| 2022 | 11 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2024 | 13 | 1 | |
| Total | 35 | 2 | |
Scores and results list Japan's goal tally first.[20]
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 28 May 2021 | Fukuda Denshi Arena, Chiba, Japan |  Myanmar |
10–0 | 10–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 2 | 19 November 2024 | Xiamen Egret Stadium, Xiamen, China |  China |
2–0 | 3–1 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Honours
editKawasaki Frontale
Vegalta Sendai
Schalke 04
Individual
References
edit- ^ a b c d Ko Itakura at Soccerway. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
- ^ "Ko Itakura". Borussia Mönchengladbach. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
- ^ "Ko Itakura". WorldFootball.net. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
- ^ "Akkoord FC Groningen met Manchester City over Japanner Itakura". FC Groningen (in Dutch). 14 January 2019. Retrieved 14 January 2019.
- ^ "Het nieuws uit Groningen - RTV Noord". 24 July 2020.
- ^ "Ko Itakura joins Schalke on loan with an option to buy". FC Schalke 04. 19 August 2021.
- ^ "Great person and player – Schalke 04 bid farewell to Ko Itakura". FC Schalke 04. 31 May 2022.
- ^ "Akira Itakura celebrates his second goal of the season" (in German). 2 September 2023. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
- ^ "Itakura named Borussia's Player of the Month for August". Borussia Mönchengladbach. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
- ^ "Uruguay v Japan game report". CONMEBOL. 20 June 2019.
- ^ "SAISON CARD CUP 2021". JFA. 29 March 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
- ^ "SAMURAI BLUE (Japan National Team) squad - FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™". 8 December 2022.
- ^ "Japan national team, Ko Itakura, followed by Spanish newspaper, Italian newspaper also selected as "Best Eleven" in World Cup Group League Round 1!(JP)". 8 December 2022.
- ^ "Japan national team defender whose value doubled in the World Cup Aggressiveness and good defense with foresight Spanish newspaper highly praises". 9 December 2022.
- ^ "Japan v Colombia game report". JFA. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
- ^ Nippon Sports Kikaku Publishing inc./日本スポーツ企画出版社, "J1&J2&J3選手名鑑ハンディ版 2018 (NSK MOOK)", 7 February 2018, Japan, ISBN 978-4905411529 (p. 96 out of 289)
- ^ Nippon Sports Kikaku Publishing inc./日本スポーツ企画出版社, "2017 J1&J2&J3選手名鑑 (NSK MOOK)", 8 February 2017, Japan, ISBN 978-4905411420 (p. 28 out of 289)
- ^ Nippon Sports Kikaku Publishing inc./日本スポーツ企画出版社, "2016J1&J2&J3選手名鑑", 10 February 2016, Japan, ISBN 978-4905411338 (p. 55 out of 289)
- ^ Ko Itakura at WorldFootball.net
- ^ a b Ko Itakura at National-Football-Teams.com
- ^ "Schalke crowned 2021/22 Bundesliga 2 champions". 15 May 2022.
- ^ "Ko Itakura 『TAG Heuer YOUNG GUNS AWARD』". 17 December 2018.
- ^ "Football ITAKURA Kou - Tokyo 2020 Olympics". International Olympic Committee. Archived from the original on 16 October 2021. Retrieved 17 October 2021.
External links
edit
- Ko Itakura at J.League (archive) (in Japanese)
- Ko Itakura – FIFA competition record (archived)