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Arsenal Linked With Japanese Midfielder

By on November 2, 2013

Arsenal have been linked with a move for Japanese midfielder Yoichiro Kakitani but will face competition from Inter Milan and Galatasaray, according to the Express.

I must say I know little about this player but the report claims we invited him for a trial earlier in his career and we’re now preparing a January bid for the 23-year-old after having him scouted extensively in recent months.

We must have liked what we’ve seen as he’s scored an impressive 17 goals from midfield for J-League outfit Cerezo Osaka so far this season.

But it appears we’re not the only club who’s been alerted to his potential with the Express suggesting Inter Milan are also keen and have been monitoring his progress for years, while Galatasaray have now thrown their hat into the ring.

Reports coming out of Turkey claim Gala want to sign the Japanese international to front their move into the Asian  market. The Turkish giants recently signed a three-year sponsorship deal with Nikon which will see the clubs TV channel broadcast in both Japan and China and they are also considering setting up friendly matches in the Far East as well as opening up a club store in Tokyo.

We’ve signed a couple of Japanese players in the past and they have hardly set the world alight. Junichi Inamoto had a stint at the club in 2001 but only made 2 cup appearances before being sent out on loan and ended up finishing his career back in his homeland.

Ryo Miyaichi has been more of a success story on these shores and is slowly breaking into the first team, but there is always a stigma that a club is buying a player from Asia simply to exploit the lucrative Asian market.

Hopefully that’s not the case if we end up signing Kakitani and he can actually push for a place in the team and not just sell shirts.