Kosei Tani has traded in the black and blue of Gamba Osaka for the black and blue of FCV Dender after making the move from the J1 side to the Belgian club. The goalkeeper will be loaning Dender on a season-long loan, with the Belgians holding the option to make the deal permanent.

Tani has long been touted as one of Japan’s best young goalkeeper prospects and has lived up to that promise since making his professional debut in 2020. He joined Shonan Bellmare on loan from his childhood club Gamba that year and immediately stepped into the starting role, shining as a teenager in the Meiji Yasuda J1 League.

After a three-year loan at Bellmare, Tani returned to Gamba this year and played fantastically. He helped the team through a difficult start of the campaign and was crucial to their summer surge that saw them play some of the best football in the league.

Tani has also been a key player at the national team level, playing for several Japan youth teams before making his senior team debut in 2022.

Tani joins a Dender side that finished 10th in the Belgian second division last year. The hope is that he can help them rise up the table this season and potentially earn promotion to the top flight.