Shillong Lajong has punched above its weight, so far, in the current I-League season. With seven rounds still to be played, the team, currently fifth in the points table, is level on points with defending champion Bengaluru FC.
One of the stars for the Shillong side has been its Japanese recruit, Yuta Kinowaki. The blonde-haired Asian has marshalled the midfield to great effect for the Thangboi Singto-coached team, while thwarting opposition attacks with ease.
“I enjoy playing in the central midfield. Though, I can play anywhere across the back-line, or as an attacking midfielder, my preferred position is in central midfield, where I can dictate things,” said Kinowaki in a tete-a-tete with Sportstar .
Yuta joined Lajong in the winter window, the latest stop in a nomadic football career that has seen the Japanese ply his trade at European leagues in Poland and Latvia.
“I was 22 when I moved to Poland to play for Energetyk Gryfino. A Japanese agent arranged for a trial in Poland and I passed it. But unfortunately due to some ‘paper issues’ I couldn’t play half of the season. The same agent then got me to Latvia where I played the entire season for BFC Daugavpils,” said the midfielder, who went on to play for Japanese club Kyto Shiko SC after an year in Latvia, before securing a move to Lajong’s North-East rival, Aizawl.
Like any modern day footballer, Yuta was lured by the promise of playing in the big Europeans leagues. “Yes, the idea was I will move to a club in Europe and one of the big leagues will find me,” said Kinowaki, who believes that he has settled well in India and now wants to build a career similar to his countryman and Mohun Bagan midfielder Katsumi Yusa.
“I was sceptical about coming to the country because I knew that would reduce my chances of playing in Europe,” said the 26-year-old. “But I’m happy and focused now. I want to improve as a footballer and win titles here. Katsumi Yusa is a role model for Asian players in the league. I want to be like him and stay for the long run.”
But with the future of the I-League still hanging in the balance, Yuta is keeping all his options alive. “We are footballers and ultimately we have to go where opportunity takes us. Like I said, I want to be here. But we don’t know what will happen to the I-League. So I have no idea what the future holds.”
The Japanese, though, has been impressed by the passion shown by Indians for football and feels the country is in the cusp of a football revolution. “It’s my second full season here and I can already feel a difference in quality. All India needs to do is maintain this effort. I have already heard of good academies popping up in places like Dimapur (Nagaland). Recently, I learned that the Mizoram government is sending a bunch of kids to Germany to learn from experts. These are all good signs,” said Yuta.
Shillong Lajong follows a strict policy of promoting home-grown, young players in the team, as highlighted by its recent match against Chennai City FC, when the coach fielded eight under-22 players in the starting line-up. Yuta, though young himself, has had to don the role of the experienced player in the side, something that he has done to great effect till date. The midfielder believes pressure is part of a professional footballer’s life, but prefers to enjoy the game and not think too much about it. “Every time you go out in the field there is the pressure of winning. I don’t think ‘I am the senior, the team depends on me’ when I go out to play. I just concentrate and work hard for the side.”
Lajong’s season so far has impressed Yuta, but the Japanese wants his team to remain focused till it achieves its target. “Our aim is to secure a top four slot. That was our aim when we started the season as well – to finish in a position better than what Lajong has achieved so far in its history of the I-League (best being sixth). So we need to continue to do the good work,” concluded Yuta.
Comments
SHARE