The "hard-working genius" returns and pushes his own weapon to the forefront.
MF 18 Manato SHINADA
Introducing the all-blue-red warriors who will challenge the 2024 season in a special content. What are the players thinking and what kind of determination are they approaching the year with as they prepare for the opening? The players' stories are filled with club love, thirst for titles, aspirations for success, and the roles they must fulfill──. Manato SHINADA, who returned from a loan to Ventforet Kofu, once again wears the "blue-red number 18". In the new season, the hard-working genius is determined to push his own weapon to the forefront.
The coaches involved have praised Manato SHINADA as a "hardworking genius". The form of that hard work is about to change a little bit.
Last season, I experienced my first transfer in my 6th professional season. I also had an injury along the way, but I left with the record of 20 games and 2 goals in the 2023 Meiji Yasuda J2 League while on loan at Ventforet Kofu. I also played 1 game in the Emperor's Cup and 2 games in the group stage of the AFC Champions League. Considering my previous 5 seasons only had a total of 20 appearances in J1, it was a valuable experience.
"It was a competition with players who have experience with the Japan national team and those who have already earned the trust of the coach in Tokyo. It was a constant battle to change something about myself."
Such efforts were taken for granted. "But in Kofu, we often talked about how to present ourselves," he said. There were players who had lived as professionals even though they were not standing in glamorous places. By interacting with them, differences were born in the preparation for the game and the way of approaching practice.
I have continued to make unrelenting efforts in Kofu as well. In a moment of thought, I received advice from my teammates, saying, "It's important not only to think about how to approach it, but also how to show it." With those words, I realized that I had been too caught up in what I lacked. That's why I started to face the player image of Manato SHINADA once again.
"I think it starts with a kick. I have to show my bold side even if it's a little difficult. I want to keep trying even if I fail many times, while sticking to my strengths. I want to maintain that attitude."
Pass freely from both feet. Read the intricacies of the game and dominate the pitch. Regain that feeling once again. Having experienced the outside world, I realized that the place I returned to had the best environment for that. There are coaches who know their own progress and great rivals as well.
"There are parts of myself that I have lost sight of. People I have known since the past also give me advice from the outside, so I want to regain the self I had in U-15 Fukagawa and U-18. The number of players of the same generation who have joined the Japan national team has increased, so I am determined to not lose to them. I want to continue playing in matches and experience the thrilling battle for the championship. I want to make that a normal thing in the future, so I am also looking forward to challenging myself there."
He will once again wear the number 18 that he has carried since his academy days, with the desire to make it his own. At the end of his search for himself, which he began as a diligent and hardworking player, he will surely bloom his own colored flower.
text by Yohhei Baba (Freelance Writer)
