Ryotaro Araki
荒木 遼太郎
Personal information
Date of birth (2002-01-29) 29 January 2002 (age 21)
Place of birth Kumamoto, Japan
Height 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Position(s) Attacking midfielder, forward
Team information
Current team
 FC Tokyo (on loan from Kashima Antlers)
Number 71
Youth career
2017–2020 Higashi Fukuoka HS
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2020– Kashima Antlers 88 (13)
2024– → FC Tokyo (loan) 0 (0)
International career‡
2018 Japan U16 2 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 11:23, 22 December 2023 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 17:04, 23 February 2020 (UTC)

Ryotaro Araki (荒木 遼太郎, Araki Ryotaro, born 29 January 2002) is a Japanese footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder and as a forward for the J1 League club FC Tokyo, on loan from Kashima Antlers.

Youth career

Beginning his career at his hometown club Roasso Kumamoto in their junior youth section, he went on to attend Higashi Fukuoka High School.[1] In 2018, he represented Japan U16 in the AFC U16 Championship.[2] In Japan's first game in the tournament, he won the man of the match award after scoring two goals in a 5-2 win over Thailand.[3] Japan went on to win the tournament, with Araki appearing in every game except for the semi-final. In his second year at Higashi Fukuoka HS, he was handed the number 10 shirt and was made captain of the team.[4] Over two seasons, Araki made 30 appearances for the school scoring 10 goals across the Prince Takamado Cup, the All Japan High School Soccer Tournament, and the Inter Highschool Championship.[5]

Club career

In October 2019, it was announced that Araki would join Kashima Antlers for the 2020 season, after graduating from Higashi Fukuoka High School.[6] He made his debut for Kashima Antlers on 23 February 2020, coming on as a substitute in a 3-0 league defeat to Sanfrecce Hiroshima.[7] He scored his first professional goal later on that season, scoring a 94th minute equaliser in a 2-2 draw against Vissel Kobe.[8][9] He made 29 appearances in his debut season aged just 18 years old, and scored two league goals during the 2020 season.[10] He improved his already impressive form in his second season, with almost 3000 minutes in 46 appearances across all competitions. In the 2021 J1 League, he scored 10 league goals and made 6 assists, totalling 16 goal contributions; the fifth most goal contributions in the league.[11] He also was the first under-20 player to score a double-digit number of goals since Shoji Jo in 1994.[12] His performances throughout the season rewarded him the J.League Rookie of the Year award.[13][14]

In the following two seasons, Araki struggled for game time and only made 26 league appearances in 2022 and 2023. In December 2023, he moved on loan to FC Tokyo for the 2024 season.[15]

Career statistics

Club

As of 3 December 2023.[16][17]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National Cup League Cup Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Japan League Emperor's Cup J.League Cup Total
Kashima Antlers 2020 J1 League 26 2 0 0 3 0 29 2
2021 36 10 3 1 7 2 46 13
2022 13 1 0 0 4 0 17 1
2023 13 0 2 0 5 1 20 1
Career total 88 13 5 1 19 3 112 17

Honors

Japan U16

Individual

References

  1. ^ "J. League Data Site". data.j-league.or.jp. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  2. ^ "U-16 Japan National Team squad, schedule - AFC U-16 Championship Malaysia 2018 (9/10 - 10/9)". JFA｜公益財団法人日本サッカー協会 (in Japanese). Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  3. ^ "AFCS". stats.the-afc.com. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  4. ^ "Ｊスカウト注目、東福岡の新10番・荒木遼太郎が桐光学園の怪物FWや鳥栖の新鋭を意識するワケ | サッカーダイジェストWeb". www.soccerdigestweb.com (in Japanese).
  5. ^ "Soccer D.B. : Ryotaro Araki All-Time Record". Soccer D.B. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  6. ^ "「厳しい道の方が成長できる」。東福岡で競争を勝ち抜く力身につけたMF荒木遼太郎、より成長するために鹿島へ". ゲキサカ (in Japanese). Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  7. ^ "Sanfrecce Hiroshima vs. Kashima Antlers - 23 February 2020 - Soccerway". uk.soccerway.com. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  8. ^ "Kashima Antlers vs. Vissel Kobe - 16 August 2020 - Soccerway". uk.soccerway.com. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  9. ^ "Kashima Antlers 2-2 Vissel Kobe | Matchweek 10 | 2020 | J1 League". Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  10. ^ "Soccer D.B. : 2020 Ryotaro Araki Result by Season". Soccer D.B. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  11. ^ "J1 League 2021 - Assists". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 27 December 2021.
  12. ^ "Ryotaro Araki, a próxima estrela do futebol japonês" (in Portuguese). goal.com. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
  13. ^ "２０２１Ｊリーグ ベストヤングプレーヤー賞 対象選手決定のお知らせ【Ｊリーグアウォーズ】：Ｊリーグ.jp". Ｊリーグ.jp（日本プロサッカーリーグ） (in Japanese). Retrieved 27 December 2021.
  14. ^ "Jリーグ 歴代のMVP・ベストイレブン・得点王・ベストヤングプレーヤー賞". ULTRAZONE (in Japanese). Retrieved 27 December 2021.
  15. ^ "News | F.C.TOKYO Official Website". fctokyo.p.translation-proxy.com. 24 December 2023. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  16. ^ Ryotaro Araki at Soccerway. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  17. ^ "Soccer D.B. : 2021 Ryotaro Araki Result by Season". Soccer D.B. Retrieved 25 April 2021.

External links

FC Tokyo – current squad
J.League Rookie of the Year
Categories