Yuta Minami facts for kids
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Yuta Minami | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 30 September 1979 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Kawasaki, Kanagawa, Japan | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing position | Goalkeeper | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1995–1997 | Shizuoka Gakuen High School | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | |||||||||||||||||||
| 1998–2009 | Kashiwa Reysol | 291 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2013 | Roasso Kumamoto | 155 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2014–2021 | Yokohama FC | 175 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2021 | → Omiya Ardija (loan) | 19 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2022–2023 | Omiya Ardija | 0 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| National team | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1997–1999 | Japan U-20 | 11 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
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Honours
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Yuta Minami (南 雄太, Minami Yūta, born 30 September 1979) is a Japanese football player. He is a goalkeeper who has played for several teams, including Kashiwa Reysol, Roasso Kumamoto, and Yokohama FC. Currently, he plays for Omiya Ardija.
Contents
Yuta Minami's Club Career
Yuta Minami was born in Kawasaki, Japan, on September 30, 1979. After finishing high school, he joined the J1 League club Kashiwa Reysol in 1998. He quickly became their main goalkeeper during his first season.
Playing for Kashiwa Reysol
From 1999, Minami competed with another player, Motohiro Yoshida, for the goalkeeper spot. Kashiwa Reysol did very well, finishing 3rd in the 1999 and 2000 J1 League seasons. By 2001, Minami was the team's full-time starting goalkeeper.
However, the team's performance dropped after 2002. In 2005, Kashiwa Reysol was moved down to the J2 League, which is a lower division. The next year, in 2006, they finished 2nd in J2 and were able to return to J1 in 2007.
Minami continued to be the main goalkeeper in 2007. But from 2008, he played less often because a new player, Takanori Sugeno, joined the team. In 2009, Minami didn't play any J1 League matches, and Kashiwa Reysol was moved down to J2 again.
Moving to New Teams
In 2010, Minami moved to Roasso Kumamoto, another J2 League club. He was their regular goalkeeper for four seasons, until 2013. In 2014, he moved to Yokohama FC, also in the J2 League. He played many games for Yokohama FC over several years. Later, he joined Omiya Ardija, first on loan in 2021, and then permanently in 2022.
Yuta Minami's National Team Career
Minami also played for Japan's national youth teams. In June 1997, while still in high school, he was chosen for the Japan U-20 national team. He played in four matches at the 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship.
In April 1999, he was selected again for the U-20 Japan team for the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship. In this tournament, he played every minute of all seven matches. Japan did very well, finishing in 2nd place!
A Memorable Mistake
On May 22, 2004, Yuta Minami made a very unusual mistake during a J. League match against Sanfrecce Hiroshima. As a goalkeeper, he had the ball in his hands and planned to throw it. But he paused for a moment, lost control, and accidentally threw the ball backward into his own team's net!
His teammates at Kashiwa Reysol were very surprised. Even though it was an "own goal" (a goal scored by a player against their own team), it didn't change the final score much, as Kashiwa lost the game 3-0. This moment is remembered as one of the few times a goalkeeper has scored an own goal in this way.
Honors and Awards
- FIFA World Youth Championship runner-up: 1999
See also
In Spanish: Yuta Minami para niños
