Sorry for long time passed since the last post. There have been many transfers and rumors coming out around Cerezo during this 20 days, and in this post, which will possibly be the last one in 2016, I want to summarize them.
Among all the news and rumors written above, most surprising (in a good way) was Kim Jin-Hyeon’s decision to remain at the club. Although this wasn’t the first time to see a rumor saying he might go out of the club, recent rumors looked realistic. He has served for the club for 8 years, he didn’t leave the club when we unfortunately were relegated to J2 although without a doubt he wanted to secure his place at the national team… So, even if he decided to move out now, no one would blame him. Everyone wouldn’t be satisfied with it but could understand it. I think that’s how most Cerezo supporters were thinking about him and his rumors.
Cerezo have acquired two players so far: Takaki Fukumitsu and Kentaro Kakoi. Fukumitsu comes from Renofa Yamaguchi and, like Shohei Kiyohara, he has stepped up year by year as he played in JFL until 2014 (with Verspah Oita), in J3 in 2015 and in J2 in 2016 (with Yamaguchi), and will play in J1 with Cerezo Osaka next year. According to one famous blogger, Fukumitsu is ranked 3rd in the number of providing through passes in 90 minutes and 1st in the total number in J2 this year. This is what Cerezo have needed for years since Fabio Simplicio left the team. A Renofa Yamaguchi supporter described him as an “all round” player who can deliver a pass, run with and without the ball, make a shot, and cover wide area of the pitch. So, it seems his strength is in attacking but he is also expected to contribute in defending.
Kakoi, which is a very rare family name, described with only one kanji “圍” which is difficult to write, was born in Nagasaki Prefecture and spent 4 years in Osaka when he attended Momoyama Gakuin (or also called St. Andrew’s) University. He participated in Cerezo’s training session and training camp according to his comments on the official website, and Cerezo made an offer for him when he graduated from the university, but then he chose FC Tokyo. He has made no appearance in J1 but played 21 games for FC Tokyo U-23 this year. He will start the next season as a third choice goalkeeper, the place Hiroyuki Takeda assumed this season.
As of writing this post, the following players have not renewed their contracts with the club: Yusuke Tanaka, Kenta Mukuhara, Jurato Ikeda, Souza, Kunimitsu Sekiguchi, and Kenyu Sugimoto. Among them, Ikeda may be loaned to Cerezo’s partner club Bangkok Glass FC. What is also unclear at the moment is who will coach the team with Yoon Jong-Hwan. There was once a rumor that Yoon would bring some staff to Cerezo, but since then no news are heard. According to a report in South Korea, the team will start their preseason activity on January 5, so these things are expected to be confirmed soon.
This will be the last post in 2016. Thank you very much for visiting my blog and reading posts written in my poor English, and also following my tweets. Have a good year everyone!