Pride. Literally, pride, self-esteem.
Although every professional soccer player has this in their heart,
Each player's approach and mindset is very different.
This season's WE ARE GAMBA OSAKA is,
Deep in the hearts of the players,
Revealing each person's pride.

The "confidence" he has had since he became a professional soccer player never wavers, no matter who he faces. It's also the pride he has in working in soccer.
"I play with people cheering me on, and people have paid to come and watch my game, so it's only natural that I should be able to play with confidence when I step onto the pitch. I think that's the minimum responsibility I have as a professional."
However, I believe that confidence is meaningless if it turns into overconfidence or self-conceit, which is why I have always tried to update myself. "Accepting my own inadequacies" is one example of this.
"I think that because you have unshakable confidence, there are times when you can't accept criticism or words from those around you. I was like that when I was younger too. However, as I've progressed in my career, I've come to appreciate the value of receiving advice from others and the importance of the words someone gives me. I've come to think that in order to become a better version of myself, sometimes I have to accept unpleasant words and criticism and let go of everything I've cultivated up until now."
The catalyst for this was his meeting with Head Coach Yahiro KAZAMA at Nagoya Grampus , where he transferred in the summer of 2018. Finding himself in an environment with a very different style of football and tactics from his time at Kashiwa, his resolve was strengthened.
"Growing up at Kashiwa Reysol since my days at the academy, I thought the football I had cultivated there was everything, so when I first met Kazama, I felt like everything I had done had been denied. Perhaps that was just an excuse for not being able to absorb new things as much as I wanted and express them in my play, and I was just running away. But as I took on board the words of the Head Coach, the staff around me, and the players, the things I saw gradually changed, I discovered a new me, and it also led to me acquiring a new outlook on football. From that experience, I've come to realize that it's important to be flexible and not be too attached to your own ideas."
However, he has personally experienced that the more he advances in his career, the less people around him will tell him what to do. In recent years, he has begun to think more about ways to obtain that stimulation himself. "Transfers" is one example of this.
"Even as you get older, you can still grow by sharpening your senses and working on your body, and by being moderate on a daily basis. However, I think changing your environment is one way to explosively speed up your growth and broaden the scope of your play. Having said that, I grew up watching Tani-kun (Hidekazu OTANI) during my time at Reysol, so somewhere in my heart I aspire to be a one-club man (laughs). But now that I've moved to Gamba, I've been working from scratch to get people to know me, and I've been exposed to a new type of football, so I think I've grown as a player. I feel like the confidence I've gained from this has made me stronger. It's given me the feeling that I want to grow even more, and that I can do it."
To further strengthen his confidence, he also stated that he "want to win a title with Gamba."


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Text by Takamura Misa

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