J1-League Transfers Dominated By Locally-Based Players

The Japan football August transfer market is has come to a close, and teams were able to beef up- where necessary. Teams were always going be cautious with salary expenditures by avoiding too many imports. The majority of the teams approached this strategy, as a way of recovery from the Covid-19 financial consequences. A lot of the teams in the smaller markets took significant losses, from having empty stadiums. It also had a negative ripple effect on their merchandise sales too. As a way of being careful with salary caps and player expenditure, 90 % of player transfers for each team, in the J1-league, happened domestically. Even when considering foreign players to be added, teams opted to sign foreign players already based in Japan. It proved to be a cost effective strategy for them.

In this article, we are going to take a closer look at all the player transfers that were made, by the 18 teams in the J1-League competition.

As per TransferMarkt.com, these were the summer transfers in Japan:

Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo : The club from Hokkaido has experienced its fair share of disappointments in 2022. They have suffered from inconsistency. Hopefully the incoming talent of players can change things around. In total, the club only signed a total of three foreign players. Two of the foreign players were already plying their trade in Japan. Striker- Gabriel Okechukwu transferred from Fukushima United for $174,794.61 , and attacking mid-fielder- Gabriel Xavier transferred from Nagoya Grampus for $849,783.25. The only player who transferred from abroad was Milan Tucic. He transferred from Belgium club- OH Leuven U21s, for $249,721.25.

Kashima Antlers: Based on their impressive from in the competition, Antlers weren't really shopping on the market for players. It's no surprise that they also signed a few players. One player- Yuma Suzuki, is a Japanese citizen who had played in Belgium. He transferred from Sint- Truidense V V for a fee of $2,002,948.34. Koki Anzai, also from Japan, transferred from Portuguese club- Portimonense. He signed a contract worth $700,000.00. South Korean player Min-Tae Kim, transferred from Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo and signed a contract worth $700,000.00, respectively as well. Brazilian center-back- Bueno, was the only other incoming player from overseas. He transferred from Athletico MG, based in Brazil, for $300,000.00.

Urawa Red Diamonds: This team has also experienced its ups and downs during their 2022 campaign. Out of all the teams, they spent the most money in terms of their player budget. They signed Japanese players based abroad, as well as foreign players abroad too. Hiroki Sakai, a Japanese right-back player, based in France, transferred from Marseille for a fee of $1,500,000.00. His playing contract is worth $2,500,000.00. Right-Winger- David Moberg Karlsson transferred from Sparta Prague for $1,000,000.00. Center-Back- Alexander Scholz transferred from FC Midtjyilland for a fee of $500,000.00. Japanese player, and center-forward- Kosuke Kinoshita transferred from Stabaek Football, as a free transfer. His contract with the Reds is worth $350,000.00. The team added another striker by signing Dutch player- Alex Schalk for $700,000.00. Schalk's transfer was from Servette FC. Brazilian duo of Fabricio and Mauricio Antonio, both transferred from Portuguese club- Portimonense. Fabricio, the center-foward, signed a contract worth $400,000.00, while Antonio (center-back) signed a contract worth $600,000.00. That last notable overseas import is a Japanese player, who was based in Belgium- Daiki Hashoika. He trasferred from Sint-Truidence V V for a contract worth $1,000,000.00.

Kashiwa Reysol: The team from Chiba opted to save money by only acquiring two foreign imports. Brazilian center-forward- Douglas,

transferred domestically from Vissel Kolbe. His contract is worth $600,000.00. The other signing is also a Brazilian center-forward- Pedro Raul , who transferred from FC Juarez for a major payday! His contract is worth $2,000,000.00.

FC Tokyo: The football team that carries the name of Japan's capital city is always under a microscope. The club has had a few glimpses of greatness, but generally, their consistency has been in question. They have opted to keep their core players and sign two foreigners as well. Brazilian center-back- Henrique Trevisan, transferred from Portuguese club- Estoril Praia. His contract is reportedly worth $350,000.00. The second Brazilian talent was acquired from Yokohama FC, in the J2-League. Arthur Silva, the defensive-Midfielder, was signed for $200,000.00.

Kawasaki Frontale: As one would expect, Kawasaki didn't need to splurge on players in this transfer period. They stuck to the famous phrase "if it isn't broken, don't fix it!" The club is loyal to Brazilian talent as they have added another two players, to their Brazilian filled, star-studded roster. Left-Winger Marcinho transferred from being a free agent. He signed a contract worth $750,000.00. Maguinho was a domestic transfer from Yokohama FC, in the J2 competition. He signed a contract for $400,000.00.

Yokohama F. Marinos: The log leaders signed Brazilian center-back- Eduardo. He was a domestic transfer from Sagan Tosu, and His fee was for $1,330,000.00. Brazilian Center-forward- Anderson Lopes, transferred from Chinese Super League side- WH Yangtse. His contract is reportedly worth $1,300,000.00. Japanese players who were signed from clubs based abroad are; Ryo Miaichi, who transferred from German club FC St. Pauli, for a contract worth $400,000.00. The other player coming from abroad is Keita Endo, who also played for a German club- Union Berlin. The left-winger signed a contract that is valued at $900,000.00.

Shonan Belmare: The club opted not to sign any foreign talent for this transfer window. The only two notable transfers from abroad were returning Japanese players. Center-Forward- Yamato Wakatsuki transferred from FC Sion, for a contract worth $150,000.00, and

Mitsuki Saito, a central mid-field player, who transferred from Rubin Kazan, for a contract worth $700,000.00.

Shimizu S-Pulse: In a quest to save their season's campaign, S-Pulse had to make some key signings. They brought in goalkeeper- Shuichi Gonda, who was based in Portugal. He transferred from Portimonense for a fee of $2,000,000.00. The club went on to sign Brazilian Defensive mid-field, Ronaldo (nickname, Pikachu) for a contract reportedly worth $600,000,00. Swiss Left-midfielder- Benjamin Kololli transferred from FC Zurich for $500,000.00.

Jubilo Iwate: The club signed two import players from Brazil. The center-back, Ricardo Graca, Transferred from Vasco Da Gama for a fee of $1,250,000.00. Central Mid-fielder- Dudu, transferred from Vila Nova FC, for a contract valued at $500,000.00.

Nagoya Grampus: The team from Aichi focused on mainly recruiting locally. They signed three Brazilian who were already based in Japan. Defensive mid-fielder- Leo Silva for ($200,000.00), right-midfielder- Thales Paula ($125,000.00) and Tiago Pagnussat, center-back ($450,000.00). The only incoming player from abroad was Jakub Swierczok. He transferred from Piast Gliwice for a fee of $2,000,000.00.

Kyoto Sanga: The newcomers into the J1-League also kept the majority of their player signings- local. They only recruited one player from abroad. Their notable overseas signing is Australian goalkeeper- Michael Woud. He joined the team as a transfer from the Dutch club- Almere City. He signed a contract for $450,000.00.

Gamba Osaka: For a team that has struggled in a number of crucial fixtures, it's surprising that Gamba decided to keep their signings more local, rather than seek marquee talent abroad. They too, signed only one player from abroad in this transfer period. They signed Japanese left-winger Keita Nakamura from Junios OO. His contract is worth $1,500,000.00.

Cerezo Osaka: A team that has shown continuous improvement by beating some of the bigger teams. They have made three crucial acquisitions in this transfer window. They signed Brazilian right-winger from Portuguese club- Santa Clara. His contract is reportedly worth $400,000.00. Japanese left-winger- Takashi Inui, transferred from Spanish club- SD Eibar for a contract valued at $800,000.00. The third key signing was for Matel jonjic- a center-back who transferred from Chinese Super League team- SH Shenhua, for a contract worth $1,000,000.00.

Vissel Kobe: If there is one team in need of player reinforcements, from the overseas market, it would be Vissel Kobe. They have struggled during the 2022 season. They face a possible relegation at the end of the season. Even though they have one of the best mid-field players to ever the game, Andres Iniesta simply isn't enough to help this team put together high level performances. They went into the international market and signed Bojan Krikic, who transferred as a free agent. His contract with the club is worth $600,000.00. Japanese center-forward- Yoshinori Muto, transferred from English club- Newcastle United, as a free agent. He is the club's biggest signing as his contract is worth $2,200,000.00. Another Japanese center-forward- Yuya Osako transferred from German club- Werde Bremen, for $900,000.00.

Hiroshima Sanfrecce: The team from Hiroshima made one international purchase. Nassim Ben Khalifa transferred as a free agent. He signed a contract worth $400,000.00.

Avispa Fukuoka: All player transfers were domestic. No player acquisitions abroad, were made.

Sagan Tosu: All player transfers were domestic. No player acquisitions abroad, were made.

By: Zila Mbekela

Football Agent- Japan

Further reading: Transfer Markt

https://www.transfermarkt.com/j-league-division-1/transfers/wettbewerb/JAP1