Kōta Takai
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Kōta Takai[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 4 September 2004[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Yokohama, Japan | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.92 m (6 ft 4 in)[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Centre-back | ||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||
Current team | Tottenham Hotspur | ||||||||||||||||
| Number | 25 | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| 2009–2011 | River FC | ||||||||||||||||
| 2011–2022 | Kawasaki Frontale | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 2022–2025 | Kawasaki Frontale | 60 | (4) | ||||||||||||||
| 2025– | Tottenham Hotspur | 0 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||
| 2019 | Japan U15 | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2022–2023 | Japan U20 | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2023–2024 | Japan U23 | 7 | (1) | ||||||||||||||
| 2024– | Japan | 4 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 8 July 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 28 June 2025 (UTC) | |||||||||||||||||
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Kōta Takai (高井 幸大, Takai Kōta; born 4 September 2004) is a Japanese professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Tottenham Hotspur and the Japan national team.
Club career
Takai was promoted to the Kawasaki Frontale first team ahead of the 2022 season.[2] He made his debut in a 8–0 victory against Guangzhou.[3]
On 8 July 2025, Takai agreed to join Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur on a permanent transfer until 2030.[4]
International career
On 4 April 2024, Takai was called up to the Japan U23 squad for the 2024 AFC U-23 Asian Cup.[5] The same year on 5 September, Takai debuted for Japan national team in a 2026 World Cup qualification against China at the Saitama Stadium 2002, replacing Ko Itakura in the 71st minute of Japan's 7–0 victory.[6]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 5 July 2025[7]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Kawasaki Frontale | 2022 | J1 League | 0 | 0 | — | — | 1[c] | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| 2023 | 14 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2[c] | 0 | — | 23 | 0 | |||
| 2024 | 24 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4[c] | 0 | 1[d] | 0 | 29 | 2 | ||
| 2025 | 22 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6[c] | 0 | — | 28 | 2 | |||
| Total | 60 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 81 | 4 | ||
| Tottenham Hotspur | 2025–26 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career total | 60 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 81 | 4 | ||
- ^ Includes Emperor's Cup
- ^ Includes J.League Cup
- ^ a b c d Appearance(s) in AFC Champions League Elite
- ^ Appearance in Japanese Super Cup
International
- As of match played 10 June 2025
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japan | 2024 | 1 | 0 |
| 2025 | 3 | 0 | |
| Total | 4 | 0 | |
Honours
Club
Kawasaki Frontale
International
Japan U23
Individual
References
- ^ a b c "FIFA U-20 World Cup Argentina 2023 Squad List: Japan (JPN)" (PDF). FIFA. 22 May 2023. p. 15. Archived (PDF) from the original on 12 May 2023. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- ^ Takenaka, Reona (15 February 2022). 高校2年生でトップ昇格。高井幸大はフロンターレの未来を担う [Promoted to the top in the second year of high school. Kodai Takai will bear the future of Frontale.]. note.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 18 April 2022.
- ^ "川崎F 17歳の大型CB高井幸大が大勝の広州戦でプロデビュー" [Kawasaki Frontale's 17-year-old CB Kodai Takai makes his professional debut against Guangzhou in a big win]. Yahoo News (in Japanese). Yahoo. 18 April 2022. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
- ^ "Kota Takai deal agreed". Tottenham Hotspur F.C. 8 July 2025. Retrieved 31 July 2025.
- ^ U-23日本代表 メンバー・スケジュール（4.6-5.4 カタール／ドーハ）AFC U23アジアカップ カタール2024 [U-23 Japan National Team Squad List (4.6-5.4 Qatar/Doha) AFC U23 Asian Cup Qatar 2024] (in Japanese). Japan Football Association. 4 April 2024. Archived from the original on 4 April 2024. Retrieved 27 April 2025.
- ^ "Football: Japan thump China 7–0 to open final-round World Cup qualifiers". Kyodo News. 5 September 2024. Retrieved 31 July 2025.
- ^ Kōta Takai at Soccerway
- ^ 神戸vs川崎Fの試合結果・データ (Fujifilm Super Cup: 2024年2月17日). J.League (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 17 February 2024. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
- ^ 【天皇杯・決勝速報】PK戦まで続く激闘の末、川崎フロンターレに軍配。柏レイソルは猛攻実らず惜敗. Football Channel (in Japanese). 9 December 2023. Archived from the original on 9 December 2023. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
- ^ ベストヤングプレーヤー賞はDF高井幸大に決定! 川崎F期待の20歳はリーグ戦24試合出場＆日本代表デビューも. Soccer King (in Japanese). Retrieved 10 December 2024.
External links
- Kota Takai at Soccerway.com
- Kota Takai at WorldFootball.net
- Kota Takai at Soccerbase.com
- Kota Takai at National-Football-Teams.com
- Kota Takai at ESPN FC
- Kota Takai at FBref.com
- Kota Takai at kicker (in German)
- Kota Takai at J.League (in Japanese)