Football Season Guide

J2 League
Japan
J2 League
2024
Vegalta Sendai
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Vegalta Sendai

In


Rikuto Ishio (def) Sendai University; Koki Matsuzawa (gk) Tokushima Vortis; Ryota Takada (def) Blaubitz Akita; Tetsuya Chinen (def) Uraw Reds; Mateus Moraes (def) Yokohama FC; Toya Myogan (mid) Kawasaki – on loan; Ryunosuke Sagara (mid) Sagan Tosu; Manato Kudo (mid) Biwako Seikei; Keito Arita (mid) Chuo University; Eron (att) Vila Nova;

Out


Ewerton (r) (mid) Portimonense – end of loan; Ryoma Kida (r) (mid) Monteedio Yamagata; Hiroto Yamada (r) (att) Cerezo Osaka – end of loan; Tae-hyeon Kim (sp) (def) Ulsan – end of loan; Koji Hachisuka (sp) (def) Blaubitz Akita; Masashi Wakasa (sp) (def) end of career; Foguinho (sp) (mid) Chapecoense; Chihiro Kato (sp) (mid) Montedio Yamagata; Yong-jun Heo (sp) (att) Pohang Steelers – end of loan; Naoya Fukumori (def) Imabari; Yosuke Akiyama (def) Fukushima; Yong-gi Ryang (mid) end of career; Manabu Saito (mid) released; Kai Matsuzaki (sp) (mid) Urawa Reds – end of loan;

Vegalta had the most valuable team in the entire J2 last season but they never realised their potential. Things were hard from the off, only 3 wins in the first 11 rounds, and Vegalta never recovered from that. In the end, instead of fighting for promition as everyone expected in September and October Vegalta had to dig deep for a series of narrow wins just to stay out of trouble. Finished the season only in 16th place with just 12 wins in 42 league matches. After the disappointing last season coach Takafumi Hori was released in January and the experienced manager Yoshiro Moriyama was appointed as his replacement. The new manager took charge only at the beginning of February so he’s yet to properly settle into the job. This late appointment also means that Vegalta are a bit late starting their winter recruitment. The only new player likely to be regular starter is Brazilian midfielder Moraes. Not many of the main players left the squad either but the fact that no major signings had been made in defence is a worry. Last season Vegalta had one of the worst defensive records, conceded 61 goals in 42 matches, but it seems this area of the team is yet to be addressed in the off-season.

Target


Vegalta seem to be in a transition period with new manager and delayed winter transfer activity. This suggests that the goals in 2024 will be modest and a top half finish should be seen as a move in the right direction.