J.LEAGUE bids goodbye to retiring legends

J.LEAGUE bids goodbye to retiring legends

Saying goodbye to any season comes with another bid farewell - to retiring players who have been a joy to watch for years.

Yoshito Okubo is stepping away after 21 magical seasons. The forward began his professional journey at Cerezo Osaka, making it perfect for him to have finished his career with the Sakura in 2021. In between, he played in Spain’s LaLiga and Germany’s Bundesliga, to go along with a slew of other MEIJI YASUDA J.LEAGUE clubs and 60 caps for the National Team. Okubo leaves the game as the J1 League’s all-time top goalscorer with 191 goals, making him a true legend.

Joining Okubo in retirement is Urawa Reds icon Yuki Abe. The 40-year-old began his career at JEF United Ichihara Chiba in 1998 and made 53 appearances for Japan, including starting in the Samurai Blue’s run to the knockout stages at the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Abe joined Urawa in 2007 and helped them to the AFC Champions League title that year. In 2010, Abe left for England, where he had a brief spell at Leicester City, before returning to the Reds less than a year and a half later. In his second spell with Urawa, Abe would help the club yet again become champions of Asia in 2017. In his final season this year, he signed off in fairytale fashion, lifting the Emperor’s Cup as the Reds’ captain.

Keiji Tamada is also calling it a career, stepping aside after 23 years in football. Tamada came up with Kashiwa Reysol, where he won a J.League Cup and broke into the National Team before moving to Nagoya Grampus. There, Tamada helped win Nagoya’s first and only J1 League crown. Tamada also spent time with Cerezo Osaka and V-Varen Nagasaki in the later part of his career, which included 72 caps for Japan, an appearance at the 2010 FIFA World Cup and a gold medal at the 2004 AFC Asian Cup.

Sagan Tosu will be without Yoshiki Takahashi going forward after the midfielder announced his retirement. Takahashi signed with Sagan out of high school and played for them from 2004, only spending a two-year period with Vegalta Sendai in the middle. He played for Sagan in J2, and then in J1, helping them to a pair of fifth-place finishes in 2012 and 2014 as they reached new heights in Tosu and spent a decade-plus in the top flight.

All of these players, and even more who have retired alongside them throughout the J.League, have made Japanese professional football what it is today. They have been massive forces at their clubs and in their communities. It is sad to see them go, but their play has left memories and legacies that will live for many years.

Last but not least, we also saw some referees hang up their whistles. Who could forget this incredible farewell for referee Nobutsugu Murakami, who gave a yellow card for the last time to Tomoaki Makino!

A new season is on the horizon and with it new adventures for everyone. We wish all of the players and officials entering the next stage of their lives and careers all the very best.

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