is a

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays for

Ehime FC commonly known as Ehime FC (愛媛FC, ''Ehime Efu Shī'') is a professional Association football, football club based in Matsuyama, Ehime, Matsuyama, the capital city of Ehime Prefecture of Japan. The club currently compete in J2 League, the s ...

Career

Born in

Hyōgo Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Hyōgo Prefecture has a population of 5,469,762 () and a geographic area of . Hyōgo Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the east, Osaka Prefecture to th ...

, Yokotani was brought up in the Koto area of

Nishinomiya 270px, Nishinomiya City Hall 270px, Aerial view of Nishinomiya city center 1985 270px, Hirota Shrine is a city located in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 484,368 in 218,948 households and a population density ...

where he attended the Koryo junior high school. Yokotani was a product of

Gamba Osaka is a Japanese professional association football, football club based in Suita, Osaka Prefecture. The club plays in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country. The club's home stadium is Panasonic Stadium Suita. They form a ...

youth academy and has been capped for the

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

at Under 17, 19 and Under 21 level. He was a member of the Japan squad playing at the

AFC Youth Championship The AFC U-20 Asian Cup, formerly known as the AFC Youth Championship and AFC U-19 Championship, is a biennial international association football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the men's under-20 national teams ...

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

. Yokotani was promoted to Gamba's first team in 2008. He made his first team debut on 7 July 2007, in a League Cup tie away at

Urawa Red Diamonds The or simply Urawa Reds (浦和レッズ, ''Urawa Rezzu''), also known as Mitsubishi Urawa Football Club from April 1992 to January 1996, are a professional association football, football club in the city of Saitama (city), Saitama, part of t ...

. In January 2008, he joined 2nd Division side

Ehime is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Ehime Prefecture has a population of 1,334,841 and a geographic area of 5,676 km2 (2,191 sq mi). Ehime Prefecture borders Kagawa Prefecture to the northeast, Tokushima Prefecture to th ...

on loan. He scored his first goal for Ehime in a 4-1 defeat at

Sanfrecce Hiroshima Sanfrecce Hiroshima () is a Japanese professional association football, football club based in Hiroshima. The club competes in the J1 League, top flight of the Japanese football league system. Sanfrecce is one of the most successful clubs in Ja ...

, on 23 September 2008. On 7 January 2013, Yokotani moved to

Kyoto Sanga is a Japanese professional football club based in Kyoto Kyoto ( or ; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan's largest and most populous island of Ho ...

on a season-long loan. He then signed for Kyoto-based club, before moving to

Omiya Ardija is a Japanese professional association football club based in Ōmiya-ku, Saitama, Ōmiya, Saitama Prefecture. Its "hometown" (as designated by the league) is shared with neighbours Urawa Red Diamonds. The team currently play in J2 League, the ...

Club statistics

''Updated to 23 February 2018''.Nippon Sports Kikaku Publishing inc./日本スポーツ企画出版社
"2017 J1&J2&J3選手名鑑 (NSK MOOK)"
8 February 2017, Japan, (p. 62 out of 289)

References

External links

* * * 1987 births Living people Association football people from Hyōgo Prefecture Japanese men's footballers J1 League players J2 League players Gamba Osaka players Ehime FC players Kyoto Sanga FC players RB Omiya Ardija players Ventforet Kofu players Men's association football midfielders Sportspeople from Nishinomiya 21st-century Japanese sportsmen {{Japan-footy-midfielder-1980s-stub