Niko Takahashi[5] (高橋仁胡, Takahashi Niko, born 17 August 2005) is a professional footballer who plays as a left back for FC Barcelona Juvenile B. Born in Spain, he is a Japan youth international.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Birth name | Niko Takahashi Cendagorta[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 17 August 2005 | ||
| Place of birth | Cornellà, Spain[1] | ||
| Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Left back, centre back[3] | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Barcelona Juvenile B | ||
| Youth career | |||
| FCB Peñas | |||
| San Cugat | |||
| Cornellà | |||
| 2019–2024 | Barcelona | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2024- | Cerezo Osaka | 0 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2022– | Japan U19 | 2 | (0) |
| 2023– | Japan U20 | 6 | (0) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 17:04, 22 June 2021 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 24 May 2023[4] | |||
Club career
editEarly career
editBorn in the Barcelona metropolitan area to a Japanese mother and Argentine father, Takahashi played futsal at a young age, before joining his first club FCB Peñas in La Floresta.[6][7]
He joined local side San Cugat before moving to Cornellà, where he attracted the attention of Espanyol, Girona and Barcelona.[6] He chose to sign with Barcelona, as he had supported the Catalan club since he was young, and joined in 2019.[8][9]
He signed a contract extension in September 2021.[9] A year later, in September 2022, he was named by English newspaper The Guardian as one of the best players born in 2005 worldwide.[10]
International career
editTakahashi is eligible to represent Spain, Japan and Argentina at international level. He was called up to the Japan under-16 team in 2020, but was unable to attend due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[6][8] He also received a call up to the Spain under-16 team in May 2021, and has been approached by Argentina.[7][8][11][12]
In May 2022, Takahashi was called up to the Japan national under-19 football team for the first time ahead of the 2022 Maurice Revello Tournament.[13]
References
edit- ^ a b Niko Takahashi at LaPreferente.com (in Spanish)
- ^ "Niko Takahashi Cendagorta". web.gekisaka.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 23 May 2022.
- ^ Niko Takahashi at WorldFootball.net
- ^ Niko Takahashi at Soccerway
- ^ "SQUAD LIST – FIFA U-20 World Cup Argentina 2023™" (PDF). FIFA. p. 15.
- ^ a b c Noguer, Ignasi (4 September 2021). "La història de Niko Takahashi, la perla del Barça per qui sospiren 3 seleccions" [The story of Niko Takahashi, the pearl of Barça for whom 3 national teams are fighting]. elnacional.cat (in Catalan). Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ a b "Niko Takahashi Cendagorta, la Promesa de Barcelona que Busca la Selección Argentina" [Niko Takahashi Cendagorta, the Promise of Barcelona that the Argentine National Team is Looking for]. marketingregistrado.com (in Spanish). 15 July 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ a b c Cristofanelli, Federico (14 July 2021). "La historia de Niko Takahashi, la promesa del Barcelona que está en el sub-16 de España, pero tiene propuestas para jugar en Argentina y Japón" [The story of Niko Takahashi, the promise of Barcelona who is an under-16 international for Spain, but has proposals to play for Argentina and Japan]. infobae.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ a b "バルセロナが16歳DF高橋仁胡と契約延長! 今夏に飛び級でU-18チーム登録" [Barcelona extends contract with 16-year-old defender Niko Takahashi!]. news.yahoo.co.jp (in Japanese). 2 September 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ Christenson, Marcus; Bloor, Steven; Blight, Garry (28 September 2022). "Next Generation 2022: 60 of the best young talents in world football". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
- ^ "Niko Takahashi: La gran promesa de España que Argentina y Japón se quieren robar" [Niko Takahashi: The great promise of Spain that Argentina and Japan want to steal]. elgrafico.com (in Spanish). 14 July 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ "La historia del juvenil del Barcelona que nació en España, podría jugar para Japón pero al que buscan de la Selección Argentina: Niko Takahashi, la nueva promesa de La Masía" [The history of the Barcelona youth who was born in Spain, could play for Japan but the one they are looking for from the Argentine National Team: Niko Takahashi, the new promise of La Masía]. tntsports.com.ar (in Spanish). 14 July 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ^ Kawabata, Akihiko (23 May 2022). "異色選出のU-19日本代表。多重国籍のバルセロナDF高橋センダゴルタ仁胡ら招集に見るJFAの戦略" [U-19 Japan National Team selected from a different color. JFA strategy seen in the convocation of multinational Barcelona defender Niko Takahashi Cendagorta and others]. goal.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 22 May 2022.
External links
edit- Niko Takahashi at ESPN FC
- Niko Takahashi at Flashscore.com