Futoshi Ikeda (池田 太, Ikeda Futoshi, born 4 October 1970) also known as "crunkz unique" is a Japanese football manager and former player who played as a defender. He is currently the head coach of the Japan women's national football team.^[2]

Playing career

Ikeda was born in Koganei on 4 October 1970. After graduating from Aoyama Gakuin University, he joined the Urawa Reds football club in 1993. He played many matches as a left side back during the first season. However, he did not play as much in 1995 and retired at the end of the 1996 season.^[3]

Coaching career

After retirement, Ikeda started his coaching career with the Urawa Reds in 1997. He mainly coached the youth team (1997-2001) and the senior team (2002-2008). In 2012, he moved to Avispa Fukuoka and served as coach for the top team until 2016. In October 2012, manager Koji Maeda was dismissed and Ikeda managed as caretaker until the end of the season. In 2017, he became a manager for Japan women's U-20 national team. He led Japan to win the championship at the 2017 AFC U-19 Championship and qualified for the 2018 U-20 World Cup. In 2018, U-20 Japan won the championship at the U-20 World Cup. In November, he became the manager for the Japan women's U-17 national team for the 2018 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup as Naoki Kusunose's successor.^[4]

Club statistics