Taichi Fukui will be the next Japanese starlet to join a European powerhouse, with Sagan Tosu agreeing to transfer the 18-year-old to Bayern Munich in January.

The Kanagawa-born Fukui came through the Sagan academy, where he has primarily played with the U-18 team, but his talents earned him call-ups to the senior side in both the league and the J.League YBC Levain Cup.

The midfielder is considered one of the brightest young talents in all of Japan and drew the attention of major European clubs with his sterling play over the last year. Now, he is set for Bayern, a club that has won the German Bundesliga 32 times and the UEFA Champions League on six occasions.

Fukui joins a slew of young talents who came up in the Meiji Yasuda J.League and are now playing in Germany, with Maya Yoshida, Wataru Endo, Makoto Hasebe, Ko Itakura, Daichi Kamada, Genki Haraguchi, Ritsu Doan, and Takuma Asano all already playing in one of the world’s foremost footballing nations.