<strong>'Let's create a legacy'</strong> - Kazuyoshi Miura, fifty-eight, signs with new football side.
The legendary Japanese striker, set to turn 59 next month and is the world's oldest professional footballer, has agreed to a loan deal until June with J3 League club Fukushima United.
This move means Miura could play in the Japanese professional league - encompassing the highest tiers of Japanese football - for the initial occasion in five years.
The former Japan striker, who started his career with the Brazilian club Santos in 1986, failed to score in 69 minutes across seven appearances last season while on loan at JFL side Atletico Suzuka.
"My love for the game hasn't changed, no matter how old I get," he said as he prepares for a forty-first campaign as a professional footballer.
"I am truly thankful to be presented with this chance. I promise I will play with everything I have to help the team. Together, we can create a legacy!"
Known as 'King Kazu' in Japan, this will be Miura's fourth loan since 2022 from second division club Yokohama FC.
The veteran, who has also featured in Italy, Croatia and Australia, joined the club in 2005 but has remained absent from the pitch for them since 2020.
He scored 55 goals in 89 games in an international career that concluded in 2000, two years after his notable omission from the squad for Japan's first World Cup finals appearance.
The footballer, who has expressed a desire for playing until he is 60, said he was ready to "embrace a fresh test" after being demoted last season to the country's lower regional divisions.
Fukushima United ended the season in tenth place in the twenty-club third division last season.
