‘Special One’ coach Jose Mourinho, who could not embrace Kim Min-jae, is planning to soothe his disappointment by recruiting a Japanese defender.
It is news that coach Mourinho has put Japanese soccer team center back Hiroki Ito as a strong candidate to recruit.
On the 12th, the influential Italian newspaper ‘Corriere dello Sport’ said, “Several Japanese players who have reached the round of 16 in the Qatar World Cup are receiving love calls from other teams in Europe. Among them, AS Roma is watching Ito.” Introduced.
Roma is a team that Mourinho has been leading since 2020, when he was sacked from Tottenham.
Ito transferred from Jubilo Iwata in Japan to Stuttgart in Germany in July 2021. He is 23 years old, and he is tall at 188cm, and the newspaper explains that coach Mourinho prefers him because he uses his left foot.
‘Corriere dello Sport’ said, “Director Mourinho tried to bring him in November last year and last January, but he could not achieve it.” I have a contract up to. However, I can leave this summer, two years before the contract expires.”
Playing as the undisputed main center back in Stuttgart, he is known to have an offensive side, recording one goal and two assists in 51 games. 바카라
He was also in the final entry for the World Cup in Qatar last year, but only played 45 minutes as a substitute in the second half against Costa Rica, which was defeated 0-1. As he is young, in the 2026 World Cup, his national team is expected to expand a little more.
Coach Mourinho recently revealed the story of his failure to bring Kim Min-jae to Tottenham, which became a hot topic in Korea as well as Europe.
At the time, he showed affection for Kim Min-jae, who was in Beijing, China, and made several video calls to him, but the Tottenham club did not have confidence in Kim Min-jae and did not want to spend money on his transfer.
Mourinho once praised Kim Min-jae, saying, “(Tottenham thought) that garbage player is the player who plays in Napoli.”
It means that there is no prejudice against Asian defenders, and as if reflecting this, he is sending a love call to Ito.