Takefusa Kubo

The young boy from the 'Land of the Rising Sun' keeps to keep his feet warm that for blistering speed and those sharp turns, and wheels have never figured in to the equation!

Born on June 4th, 2001, in Kawasaki Japan, his affinity for the football was apparent from a very early age, and beginning at the age of 7, the youngster started playing football with a number of academies, including, FC Persimmon, Tokyo Verdy, Kawasaki Frontale, and FC Tokyo. Between 2011-2015 there was even a spell at FC Barcelona’s fabled La Masia, where he was even awarded the MVP, after being top goal scorer with 74 goals in 30 games. The sky seemed to be the limit, but a violation of FIFA rules saw the prodigious talent return to Japan. Upon his return, the winger joined up with FC Tokyo, and made his debut in the J.League at a record setting age of 15 years, 5 months and one day; consequently he became the youngest player to score in the division after netting the winner in a 1-0 win over Cerezo Osaka. The fledgling footballer made a total of 30 appearances for FC Tokyo and chipped in with a combined 11 goals and assists. In the summer of 2014 another Spanish giant, Real Madrid, signed ‘The Japanese Messi’ to their ranks on a five-year deal. However, "the kid" from Japan was loaned out to RCD Mallorca to help him come to terms with La Liga football with regular first-team opportunities. The mesmeric dribbler grabbed the opportunity with both feet and featured in all but three league fixtures during the 2019/20 campaign, netting 4 goals and finding his teammates for 5 more. His successful spell led to another loan move, this time with Villarreal for the 2020/21 campaign.