Wellington Phoenix have turned to Japan’s top flight once more, signing creative attacker Hideki Ishige from J1 League giants Gamba Osaka.
Ishige moves to Wellington on a two-year deal following the arrival of countryman Kazuki Nagasawa, who joined the Phoenix following stints with Urawa Red Diamonds and Nagoya Grampus.
The 29-year-old brings a wealth of experience to the 2023-24 Isuzu UTE A-League semi-finalists, having played almost 300 professional matches in Japan – more than half of which have been in the J1 League via Gamba Osaka and Shimizu S-Pulse.
Ishige has spent the past three seasons at Gamba, where he has made 46 top-flight appearances and 61 across all competitions.
“I want to say thank you to everyone at Wellington Phoenix for accepting me,” Ishige said.
“From now on I will devote everything I have to the team and do my best so that we can win the Championship.”
Ishige is also a former Japan youth international, who was crowned the AFC
men’s youth player of the year in 2011 after starring at the FIFA Under-17 World Cup
in Mexico.
At the 2011 tournament, which featured the likes of Marquinhos, Aymeric Laporte, Memphis Depay, Nathan Ake, Raheem Sterling and Emre Can, he scored the first two goals and set-up the third in a 6-0 win over New Zealand.
READ MORE
BACK ON BOARD: Canberra re-sign ‘key part’ of Liberty A-League squad
ALL ACCESS ALOISI: I spent a day inside Socceroos great’s inner sanctum. What we learned
CACERES CLAUSE: What FA, APL & PFA statement means for transfers in the A-Leagues
OUR ROOS: Golden Boot winner, City skipper called up by Socceroos
Phoenix head coach Giancarlo Italiano said: “The way that we’re evolving the team my preference is for technically good players and players with speed, and Hideki fits that mould.
“He can play as a 10, he can play as an inverted winger, he can play as a nine, he can play as a second striker, he can play in the midfield, and he’s also played as an inverted full-back when he was at S-Pulse.
“Hideki’s versatility and the fact that he can play anywhere makes it easier for me in terms of coaching because I can be a little bit more flexible tactically and put him in areas I know he won’t be uncomfortable.
“He’s also got a knack for scoring goals from distance and he’s a very crafty player around the box, which is very, very important for me.
“And Hideki’s played at a high level for a long time, and that experience is good for the team.”
Ishige joins Marco Rojas, Paulo Retre, Luke Brooke-Smith, Josh Oluwayemi and Nagasawa as the new faces at the Phoenix.
Italiano added: “Hideki was a little bit unlucky with injuries a couple of years ago that halted his career, but I think if we get his confidence up he’s going to be a great player in the A-League.
“That’s a reason why we’ve signed him on a two-year contract. It’s going to take a bit of time for him to adjust.
“The first year for a foreign player is always the most difficult, but we’re hoping we can build on that and next year he can have a breakout season.”
