is a former

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 ...

ese

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player.

Playing career

Watanabe was born in Iwaki on March 15, 1982. After graduating from high school, he joined newly was promoted to

J1 League The , the J.League or the for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Japan and the highest level of the Japanese football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation ...

club,

Kawasaki Frontale is a Japanese professional football club based in Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo. The club currently compete in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country. Their home stadium is Kawasaki Todoroki Stadium i ...

in 2000. Immediately after joining the club, Watanabe went to Brazil for a year, a experienced he said: "I think it was a very good experience. The midfield over there was extremely intense. It felt like we were really clashing." However, Watanabe could not play at all in the match in 2000 and the club was relegated to

J2 League The or simply J2 is the second division of the and the second level of the Japanese association football league system. The top tier is represented by the J1 League. It (along with the rest of the J.League) is currently sponsored by Meiji Yasud ...

from 2001. He played many matches as defensive midfielder from 2001. In 2003, he was converted to center back and became a regular player. However his opportunity to play decreased from 2004. Although the club won the champions in 2004 and was promoted to J1 from 2005, he could hardly play in the match in J1. In 2006, he moved to J2 club

Montedio Yamagata is a Japanese people, Japanese professional association football club based in Tendo, Yamagata. The club currently playing in J2 League, the Japanese second tier of professional football. Name origin Montedio is a coined word combining the I ...

. He became a regular player as defensive midfielder. Although his opportunity to play decreased from summer 2007, the club was promoted to J1 first time in the club history from 2009. He played many matches as substitute midfielder. In 2010, he moved to

Roasso Kumamoto is a Japanese football club based in Kumamoto, the capital city of Kumamoto Prefecture. The club currently plays in the J2 League, Japan's 2nd tier of professional league football. Name origin ''Roasso'' is a portmanteau of the Italian words ...

and played many matches. In 2011, he moved to

Japan Football League The , also known as simply the JFL, is the 4th tier of the Japanese association football league system, positioned beneath the three divisions of the J.League. The league features fully professional teams that hold J.League 100 Year Plan club sta ...

club

Matsumoto Yamaga FC or simply Matsumoto Yamaga (松本山雅FC, ''Matsumoto Yamaga Efu Shī'') is a Japanese football (soccer) club based in the city of Matsumoto, located in the Nagano Prefecture. The club currently plays in the J3 League, Japanese third tier o ...

. He played many matches and the club was promoted to J2 from 2012. In 2013, he moved to J2 club

Yokohama FC is a Japanese professional football club based in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, part of the Greater Tokyo Area. The club was formed by fans of Yokohama Flügels as a protest against Flügels' merger with Yokohama Marinos in 1999, becoming th ...

. However he could not play many matches in 3 seasons. In 2016, he moved to his local club

Fukushima United FC is a Japanese football club from Fukushima City, the capital of Fukushima Prefecture. They currently play in the J3 League, Japan's third tier of professional football. History The club was founded in 2006, by the merger of ''FC Pelada Fukus ...

J3 League or simply J3 is the third division of . It was established in 2013 as the third-tier professional association football league in Japan under the organization of J.League. The league is known as the for sponsorship reasons. The third-tier nation ...

. He played many matches as defensive midfielder and retired end of 2017 season.

Club statistics

Fukushima United FC
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References

External links

*
Profile at Fukushima United FC
1982 births Living people Sportspeople from Iwaki, Fukushima Association football people from Fukushima Prefecture Japanese men's footballers J1 League players J2 League players J3 League players Japan Football League players Kawasaki Frontale players Montedio Yamagata players Roasso Kumamoto players Matsumoto Yamaga FC players Yokohama FC players Fukushima United FC players Men's association football midfielders 21st-century Japanese sportsmen {{Japan-footy-midfielder-1980s-stub