Hotaru Yamaguchi facts for kids
Yamaguchi lining up for Japan at the 2018 FIFA World Cup
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||
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| Full name | Hotaru Yamaguchi | ||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 6 October 1990 | ||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Nabari, Mie, Japan | ||||||||||||
| Height | 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Defensive midfielder | ||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||
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Current team
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V-Varen Nagasaki | ||||||||||||
| Number | 5 | ||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||
| 2000–2002 | Minowa West SC | ||||||||||||
| 2003–2008 | Cerezo Osaka | ||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||
| 2009–2015 | Cerezo Osaka | 140 | (11) | ||||||||||
| 2016 | Port Vale | 6 | (0) | ||||||||||
| 2016–2018 | Cerezo Osaka | 85 | (3) | ||||||||||
| 2019–2024 | Vissel Kobe | 192 | (23) | ||||||||||
| 2025– | V-Varen Nagasaki | 2 | (0) | ||||||||||
| International career‡ | |||||||||||||
| 2010–2012 | Japan U23 | 29 | (1) | ||||||||||
| 2013–2019 | Japan | 48 | (3) | ||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 23 February 2025, 14:20 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 19 November 2019 |
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Hotaru Yamaguchi (born October 6, 1990) is a Japanese professional footballer. He plays as a defensive midfielder. Currently, he plays for the club V-Varen Nagasaki. Yamaguchi was also a member of the Japan national team until 2019.
Contents
Hotaru Yamaguchi's Football Journey
Starting Young: Early Days in Football
Hotaru Yamaguchi started playing football when he was in third grade. He mostly played as an attacking midfielder. When he entered junior high, he tried out for several youth academies. These included Cerezo Osaka, Gamba Osaka, and Kyoto Purple Sanga. He chose to join the Cerezo Under-15 team.
He quickly showed great skill at the club. He was chosen for the first group of the Japan Football Association Elite Program. This happened at the end of his first year. In 2006, Yamaguchi moved up to the Cerezo Under-18 team. He was the captain of this team. In 2008, they won the JFA Prince League U-18. Yamaguchi was even named the league's Most Valuable Player (MVP).
Playing for Cerezo Osaka
In 2009, Yamaguchi joined the senior team of Cerezo Osaka. His teammate Yusuke Maruhashi also joined. Yamaguchi spent three months training with the Palmeiras Under-21 academy. In his second season, he was selected for the Japan Under-21 team. He played in every match at the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou. His team won the gold medal.
Yamaguchi started getting a lot of playing time with Cerezo in 2011. He scored his first league goal against Urawa Reds. Later that season, he often played as an attacking midfielder. He finished the season with 30 appearances. In 2012, he became a regular player for Cerezo. He played in central midfield with Takahiro Ogihara for both his club and the national team. He was also named to the Under-23 team.
Time in Germany: Hannover 96
On December 21, 2015, the German club Hannover 96 announced they had signed Yamaguchi. He played for Hannover 96 in 2016. However, he returned to Cerezo Osaka in the middle of that season.
Success with Vissel Kobe
On December 19, 2018, Yamaguchi made a big move. He transferred to Vissel Kobe. He wanted to help the team win the J1 League and the AFC Champions League. He achieved his goal by winning the league championship with them. Reports said he signed a three-year contract.
New Chapter: V-Varen Nagasaki
On December 23, 2024, it was announced that Yamaguchi would transfer to the J2 club, V-Varen Nagasaki. He officially joined the team in 2025.
Playing for Japan: International Career
Yamaguchi played for the Japan Under-23 national team. This was under coach Takashi Sekizuka. They successfully qualified for the 2012 Summer Olympics. He was part of the final team for the 2012 Summer Olympics. Japan finished in fourth place at the tournament.
In July 2013, Yamaguchi was called up to the senior Japan side for the first time. This was by coach Alberto Zaccheroni for the 2013 EAFF East Asian Cup. He played in all three matches and was named the tournament's MVP.
In May 2018, he was chosen for Japan's team for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
Career Highlights and Achievements
Hotaru Yamaguchi has won many awards and championships throughout his career.
Club Trophies
- Cerezo Osaka
- Emperor's Cup: 2017
- J.League Cup: 2017
- Japanese Super Cup: 2018
- Vissel Kobe
- J1 League: 2023, 2024
- Emperor's Cup: 2019, 2024
- Japanese Super Cup: 2020
International Medals
- Japan
- EAFF East Asian Cup: 2013
- Japan U-23
- Asian Games: 2010 (Gold Medal)
Individual Awards
- EAFF East Asian Cup Most Valuable Player: 2013
- J.League Best XI: 2013, 2017, 2023
Career Statistics Summary
Hotaru Yamaguchi has played many games for his clubs and country. Here's a quick look at his appearances and goals.
Club Appearances and Goals
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Cerezo Osaka | 2009 | J.League Div 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 3 | 0 | |||
| 2010 | J.League Div 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 4 | 0 | |||
| 2011 | 17 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 23 | 1 | |||
| 2012 | 30 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 0 | — | — | 40 | 4 | ||||
| 2013 | 34 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | — | — | 42 | 7 | ||||
| 2014 | 19 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | — | 28 | 1 | |||
| 2015 | J2 League | 35 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | 37 | 1 | |||
| 2016 | 19 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | 22 | 1 | ||||
| 2017 | J1 League | 32 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 39 | 3 | |||
| 2018 | 33 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 39 | 0 | |||
| Total | 226 | 14 | 16 | 3 | 19 | 1 | 14 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 279 | 18 | ||
| Hannover 96 | 2015–16 | Bundesliga | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 6 | 0 | |||
| Vissel Kobe | 2019 | J1 League | 34 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 41 | 6 | ||
| 2020 | 34 | 6 | — | 1 | 0 | 7 | 1 | — | 42 | 7 | ||||
| 2021 | 32 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 1 | — | — | 43 | 6 | ||||
| 2022 | 33 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | 44 | 2 | |||
| 2023 | 32 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 37 | 4 | ||||
| 2024 | 27 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 30 | 3 | |||||
| Total | 192 | 23 | 17 | 2 | 15 | 2 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 237 | 28 | ||
| V-Varen Nagasaki | 2025 | J2 League | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||
| Total | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 2 | 0 | ||||||
| Career total | 426 | 37 | 33 | 5 | 34 | 3 | 27 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 524 | 46 | ||
International Appearances and Goals
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japan | 2013 | 8 | 0 |
| 2014 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2015 | 9 | 1 | |
| 2016 | 6 | 1 | |
| 2017 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 3 | 1 | |
| Total | 48 | 3 | |
- Scores and results list Japan's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Yamaguchi goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 August 2015 | Wuhan Sports Center Stadium, Wuhan, China |  South Korea |
1–1 | 1–1 | 2015 EAFF East Asian Cup |
| 2 | 6 October 2016 | Saitama Stadium 2002, Saitama, Japan |  Iraq |
2–1 | 2–1 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 3 | 19 November 2019 | Panasonic Stadium Suita, Suita, Japan |  Venezuela |
1–4 | 1–4 | 2019 Kirin Challenge Cup |
See also
In Spanish: Hotaru Yamaguchi para niños
