The registration of Jun Nishikawa as a JFA & J.League specially-designated player has been completed, the club announced today.
2020年にセレッソへの加入内定している #西川潤 選手（桐光学園高等学校）がJFA・Ｊリーグ特別指定選手として認定されました。
— まいど！セレッソ (@my_cerezo) March 8, 2019
今後、高校在学のままでＪリーグなどの公式戦出場が可能になります。https://t.co/7sk5nT9nj6 #cerezo #セレッソ大阪 pic.twitter.com/DHaUWJajZA
The club already announced that the Kanagawa-born 20-year-old agreed to join them next year after graduating from Toko Gakuen High School. Such a player can play for that team if he is registered as a specially-designated player.
Now he is available to play for the club. Sports Nippon reported this morning that he may make his debut for Cerezo in the Levain Cup match against Vissel Kobe, which will take place next Wednesday, at the earliest.
Of course, he is still a high school student who lives in Kanagawa Prefecture, about 380 kilometers away from Osaka, so it will be difficult for him to frequently train and play with the team, but thankfully high schools are in spring break now.
In addition to Nishikawa, Cerezo also announced that 10 academy players (Nagi Matsumoto, Shota Fujio, Ryuya Nishio, Taiyo Shimokawa, Teruki Origuchi, Go Kambayashi, Takaya Yoshinare, Temma Nomura, Kaito Hayashida, and Riyon Tori) have been registered as class-2 players, thereby becoming available to play in an official league match.