Yukiya Sugita

Sugi
Personal information
Full nameYukiya Sugita
Date of birth22 April 1993
Place of birthSaitama, Japan
Height1.64 m (5 ft 4 1⁄2 in)
Playing positionLeft winger
Club information
Current team
Hércules
Youth career
2009–2011Kashiwa Reysol
2011–2012Sendai University
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps†(Gls)†
2013Jove Español B10(1)
2013Jove Español11(1)
2013–Hércules16(2)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 10 May 2014.
† Appearances (Goals).

Yukiya Sugita (杉田 祐希也 Sugita Yukiya, born 22 April 1993), commonly known as a Sugi, is a Japanese footballer who plays for Hércules CF as a left winger.

Club career

Sugi was born in Saitama, and joined Kashiwa Reysol's youth setup in 2009, aged 16. In the 2011 summer the Spanish agent Javier Subirats decided to represent him, after a friendly match between Kashiwa and Elche CF's reserves.

However, after failing to join the Andalusians, Sugi returned to Japan to play for Sendai University until October 2012, when Gaspar Campillo, coach and sporting director of FC Jove Español San Vicente, decided to sign him after positive reports written by Subirats.[1] He signed an 18-month deal with the Valencian side, but due to bureaucratic problems, was unable to play with the main squad in Tercera División, and was assigned to the B-team in the regional levels.[2]

After Jove Español's assignment as a farm team of Hércules CF, Sugi was called up to the latter's first-team, by manager Quique Hernández. He played his first match as a professional on 11 September 2013, replacing Quique de Lucas in the 56th minute of a 2–0 home win against Real Murcia, for the season's Copa del Rey,[3] becoming the first Asian to play for Hércules.

Sugi made his league debut on 17 November, again from the bench in a 2–4 loss at Córdoba CF for the Segunda División championship,[4] and scored his first professional goal seven days later, netting the last of a 3–0 home success against CE Sabadell.[5] On 22 December, he renewed his link with the Valencian side, signing a three-and-a-half contract with a €10 million clause, being definitely promoted to the main squad.[6]

References

  1. ↑ "10 indonesios, 4 mexicanos y un japonés llegan al Jove Español" [10 Indonesians, 4 Mexicans and one Japanese arrive in FC Jove Español] (in Spanish). Alicante Actualidad. 9 November 2012. Retrieved 25 November 2013.
  2. ↑ "Entrevista a Yukiya Sugita "Sugi"" [Interview of Sugita Yukiya "Sugi"] (in Spanish). Zona Hércules. 9 September 2013. Retrieved 20 September 2013.
  3. ↑ "El Hércules supera con comodidad al Murcia" [Hércules overcomes Murcia comfortably] (in Spanish). Marca. 11 September 2013. Retrieved 20 November 2013.
  4. ↑ "Un triplete de Uli Dávila devuelve al Córdoba a la senda del triunfo" [Dávila's hat-trick takes Córdoba back to winning ways] (in Spanish). Marca. 17 November 2013. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  5. ↑ "La efectividad alicantina da caza a los arlequinados en la tabla" [Alicantines' effectiveness hunts the Arquelinats at the table] (in Spanish). Marca. 24 November 2013. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  6. ↑ "Sugi, hasta 2017 con 10 millones de cláusula" [Sugi, until 2017 with a 10 million clause] (in Spanish). Diario Información. 22 December 2013. Retrieved 3 June 2014.

External links