View source for Yoshito Ōkubo

{{Short description|Japanese footballer}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox football biography
| name = Yoshito Okubo
| image = Okubo_Yoshito.jpg
| upright = 0.9
| caption = Okubo in 2016
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1982|6|9|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Kanda, Fukuoka|Kanda]], [[Fukuoka Prefecture|Fukuoka]], Japan
| death_date = 
| death_place = 
| height = 1.70 m
| position = [[Forward (association football)|Forward]]
| currentclub = 
| clubnumber = 
| youthyears1 = 1998–2000
| youthclubs1 = Kunimi High School
| years1 = 2001–2006
| clubs1 = [[Cerezo Osaka]]
| caps1 = 87
| goals1 = 39
| years2 = 2005–2006
| clubs2 = → [[RCD Mallorca|Mallorca]] (loan)
| caps2 = 39
| goals2 = 5
| years3 = 2007–2008
| clubs3 = [[Vissel Kobe]]
| caps3 = 62
| goals3 = 25
| years4 = 2009
| clubs4 = [[VfL Wolfsburg]]
| caps4 = 9
| goals4 = 0
| years5 = 2009–2012
| clubs5 = [[Vissel Kobe]]
| caps5 = 92
| goals5 = 25
| years6 = 2013–2016
| clubs6 = [[Kawasaki Frontale]]
| caps6 = 130
| goals6 = 82
| years7 = 2017
| clubs7 = [[FC Tokyo]]
| caps7 = 28
| goals7 = 8
| years8 = 2018
| clubs8 = [[Kawasaki Frontale]]
| caps8 = 12
| goals8 = 2
| years9 = 2018–2019
| clubs9 = [[Júbilo Iwata]]
| caps9 = 37
| goals9 = 4
| years10 = 2020
| clubs10 = [[Tokyo Verdy]]
| caps10 = 19
| goals10 = 0
| years11 = 2021
| clubs11 = [[Cerezo Osaka]]
| caps11 = 29
| goals11 = 6
| totalcaps = 544
| totalgoals = 196
| nationalyears1 = 2004
| nationalteam1 = [[Japan national under-23 football team|Japan U23]]
| nationalcaps1 = 3
| nationalgoals1 = 2
| nationalyears2 = 2003–2014
| nationalteam2 = [[Japan national football team|Japan]]
| nationalcaps2 = 60
| nationalgoals2 = 6
| manageryears1 = 
| managerclubs1 = 
| medaltemplates = {{Medal|Team|[[Cerezo Osaka]]}}
{{Medal|RU|[[Emperor's Cup]]|[[2001 Emperor's Cup|2001]]}}
{{Medal|RU|[[Emperor's Cup]]|[[2003 Emperor's Cup|2003]]}}
{{Medal|Team|[[Kawasaki Frontale]]}}
{{Medal|W|[[J1 League]]|[[2018 J1 League|2018]]}}
{{Medal|RU|[[Emperor's Cup]]|[[2016 Emperor's Cup|2016]]}}
{{Medal|Country|{{Fb|JPN}}}}
{{Medal|Competition|[[Asian Games]]}}
{{Medal|S|[[2002 Asian Games|2002 Busan]]|[[Football at the 2002 Asian Games – Men|Team]]}}
{{Medal|Competition|[[AFC U-19 Championship]]}}
{{Medal|S|[[2000 AFC Youth Championship|2000 Iran]]|}}
| club-update = 
}}
{{Nihongo|'''Yoshito Okubo'''|大久保 嘉人|Ōkubo Yoshito|born 9 June 1982}} is a Japanese former professional [[association football|footballer]] who played as a [[forward (association football)|forward]].<ref>{{J.League player}}</ref> He played for the [[Japan national football team|Japan national team]] scoring 6 goals in 60 appearances

==Club career==
Okubo was born in [[Kanda, Fukuoka]] on 9 June 1982. After graduating from high school, he joined [[J1 League]] club [[Cerezo Osaka]] in 2001. He played many matches as forward and offensive midfielder from first season. However Cerezo finished at the bottom place in [[2001 J.League Division 1|2001 season]] and was relegated to [[J2 League]]. In 2002 season, he scored 18 goals which was the second top scorer and Cerezo reached the second place and was returned to J1 in a year. From 2003, he scored more than 15 goals in J1. He was also selected [[Asian Young Footballer of the Year]] award in 2003.

In 2005, Okubo moved to [[La Liga]] club [[RCD Mallorca|Mallorca]] on loan. Although the club results were bad, Mallorca finished at 17th place and remained La Liga in [[2004–05 La Liga|2004–05 season]]. Although he played many matches as substitute forward in [[2005–06 La Liga|2005–06 season]], his opportunity to play decreased from April 2006.<ref>[http://germany2006.nikkansports.com/local/p-sc-tp5-20060507-0005.html nikkansports.com]{{in lang|ja}}</ref>

In June 2006, Okubo returned to [[Cerezo Osaka]]. At then Cerezo won only one of 13 matches and at the bottom place of 18 clubs in [[2006 J.League Division 1|2006 season]].<ref>[https://data.j-league.or.jp/SFRT05/?search=search&yearIdLabel=2006%E5%B9%B4&yearId=2006&competitionIdLabel=%EF%BC%AA%E3%83%AA%E3%83%BC%E3%82%B0%E3%80%80%E3%83%87%E3%82%A3%E3%83%93%E3%82%B8%E3%83%A7%E3%83%B3%EF%BC%91&competitionId=212&currIdx=9 J.League]</ref> Although he played as forward all matches excluding suspension, Cerezo finished at the 17th place and was relegated to J2 again.<ref>[https://data.j-league.or.jp/SS/jpn/team/2006010001_000031_W0707_J.html J.League]</ref>

In 2007, Okubo moved to J1 club [[Vissel Kobe]]. He played many matches as left midfielder in two seasons under manager [[Hiroshi Matsuda]] and scored more than ten goals both seasons.

On 3 January 2009, Vissel Kobe announced Okubo's transfer to [[VfL Wolfsburg]] of the [[Bundesliga]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.vissel-kobe.co.jp/whatsnew/wn_2986.html |script-title=ja:ＦＷ大久保嘉人選手の海外移籍について |language=ja |publisher=vissel-kobe.co.jp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001011447/http://www.vissel-kobe.co.jp/whatsnew/wn_2986.html |archive-date=1 October 2011 }}</ref> After just six months with Wolfsburg, he returned to Vissel Kobe. Upon his return, he became the first Japanese striker to have won the Bundesliga title.

In June 2009, Okubo returned to Japan and re-joined [[Vissel Kobe]]. He played as forward all 19 matches and scored 8 goals in 2009 season.<ref>[https://data.j-league.or.jp/SS/jpn/team/2009010001_000028_W0707_J.html J.League]</ref> Although his opportunity to play decreased for injuries in 2010, he played as regular player until 2012. However Vissel finished at the 16th place in [[2012 J.League Division 1|2012 season]] and was relegated to [[J2 League]].

After Vissel Kobe was relegated to the [[J2 League]] in 2013 season, Okubo transferred to [[Kawasaki Frontale]]. An ever-present figure and a regular starting eleven in Kawasaki, he scored 26 goals in his debut season in the [[Kanagawa Prefecture]] football club and clinched top scorer of [[2013 J.League Division 1|2013 season]]. He played more than 30 matches every season and he became a top scorer for 3 years in a row until 2015 season.

At the end of [[2016 J1 League|2016 season]] and before [[J.League Championship]], Okubo announced he would leave [[Kawasaki Frontale]] to sign for [[FC Tokyo]] in 2017.<ref>[https://www.fctokyo.co.jp/news/detail?p=253908 FC Tokyo]{{in lang|ja}}</ref> He played in one season and scored eight goals.

In 2018, Okubo re-joined [[Kawasaki Frontale]]. However he could not as regular player and he mainly played as substitute forward.<ref>[https://data.j-league.or.jp/SFPR01/search?competition_year_ex=2018&competition_frame_id_ex=1&competition_id_ex=444&team_id_ex=21&selectedCompetitionName=%EF%BC%AA%EF%BC%91%E3%83%AA%E3%83%BC%E3%82%B0&selectedCompetitionSubName=&selectedCompetitionYear=2018%E5%B9%B4&selectedTeamName=%E5%B7%9D%E5%B4%8E%EF%BC%A6&dataSize=1&pageStartNo=0&competition_year=2018&competition_frame_id=1&competition_id=444&team_id=21 J.League]</ref>

In June 2018, Okubo moved to [[Júbilo Iwata]].<ref>[https://www.jubilo-iwata.co.jp/newslist/detail/?nw_seq=6127 Júbilo Iwata]</ref>

==International career==
In 2003, Okubo was selected [[Japan national football team|Japan national team]] by manager [[Zico (footballer)|Zico]]. He made his international debut on 31 May 2003 in a friendly against [[South Korea national football team|South Korea]] at [[National Stadium (Tokyo)|Tokyo National Stadium]] when he was sent on to the pitch to replace [[Takayuki Suzuki]].<ref name="nationalteam">[http://www.jfootball-db.com/en/players/okubo_yoshito.html Japan National Football Team Database]</ref> Although he played many matches as forward in 2003, his opportunity to play decreased from 2004 as he struggled to score goals under Zico.<ref name=nationalteam/>

Okubo was also part of the [[Japan national under-23 football team|Japan U-23 national team]] for [[Football at the 2004 Summer Olympics – Men's tournament|2004 Summer Olympics]], who exited in the first round, having finished fourth in group B, below group winners [[Paraguay]], [[Italy]] and [[Ghana]].

In August 2007, Okubo was selected Japan for the first time in 2 years by manager [[Ivica Osim]].<ref name=nationalteam/> Okubo scored his first international goal on 17 October 2007 in a friendly against [[Egypt national football team|Egypt]] at [[Yanmar Stadium Nagai|Osaka Nagai Stadium]].<ref name=nationalteam/>

In 2010, Okubo was selected Japan for [[2010 FIFA World Cup|2010 World Cup]]. He played as left midfielder in all 4 matches<ref name=nationalteam/> and Japan qualified to the knockout stage.

Okubo's selection for the [[2014 FIFA World Cup|2014 World Cup]] in Brazil was the big surprise of coach Alberto Zaccheroni's squad announcement. The forward had previously played just once for the coach in four years.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.japantimes.co.jp/sports/2014/05/12/soccer/international-soccer/okubo-surprise-pick-japan-names-world-cup-squad/#.U4mhQvldUrU|title=Zaccheroni chooses Okubo for World Cup | first=Andrew | last=McKirdy | date=12 May 2014 |newspaper=Japan Times | access-date=28 June 2018}}</ref>

==Career statistics==

===Club===
{{Updated|end of 2023 season}}<ref>[https://www.jubilo-iwata.co.jp/newslist/detail/?nw_seq=6127 Júbilo Iwata]</ref><ref>Nippon Sports Kikaku Publishing inc./日本スポーツ企画出版社, [https://www.amazon.co.jp/J1-J3%E9%81%B8%E6%89%8B%E5%90%8D%E9%91%91%E3%83%8F%E3%83%B3%E3%83%87%E3%82%A3%E7%89%88-2018-NSK-MOOK/dp/4905411521 "J1&J2&J3選手名鑑ハンディ版 2018 (NSK MOOK)"], 7 February 2018, Japan, {{ISBN|978-4905411529}} (p. 8 out of 289)</ref><ref>Nippon Sports Kikaku Publishing inc./日本スポーツ企画出版社, [https://www.amazon.co.jp/2016J1-J2-J3%E9%81%B8%E6%89%8B%E5%90%8D%E9%91%91-NSK-MOOK/dp/4905411335/ref=pd_cp_14_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=1N6B11BBGDQ32GYF7MWJ "2016J1&J2&J3選手名鑑"], 10 February 2016, Japan, {{ISBN|978-4905411338}} (p. 177 out of 289)</ref>

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
|-
!rowspan="2"|Club
!rowspan="2"|Season
!colspan="3"|League
!colspan="2"|National cup
!colspan="2"|League cup
!colspan="2"|Continental
!colspan="2"|Other{{efn|Includes [[J.League Championship]] and [[Japanese Super Cup]].}}
!colspan="2"|Total
|-
!Division!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals
|-
|rowspan="5"|[[Cerezo Osaka]]
|[[2001 Cerezo Osaka season|2001]]
|[[J1 League]]
|20||2||3||0||1||1||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||24||3
|-
|[[2002 Cerezo Osaka season|2002]]
|[[J2 League]]
|29||18||2||1||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||31||19
|-
|[[2003 Cerezo Osaka season|2003]]
|rowspan="2"|J1 League
|24||16||5||4||3||0||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||32||20
|-
|[[2004 Cerezo Osaka season|2004]]
|22||15||1||0||2||0||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||25||15
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!95!!51!!11!!5!!6!!1!!colspan="2"|—!!colspan="2"|—!!112!!57
|-
|rowspan="3"|[[RCD Mallorca|Mallorca]] (loan)
|[[2004–05 La Liga|2004–05]]
|rowspan="2"|[[La Liga]]
|13||3||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||13||3
|-
|[[2005–06 La Liga|2005–06]]
|26||2||1||1||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||27||3
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!39!!5!!1!!1!!colspan="2"|—!!colspan="2"|—!!colspan="2"|—!!40!!6
|-
|Cerezo Osaka
|[[2006 Cerezo Osaka season|2006]]
|J1 League
|21||6||0||0||0||0||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||21||6
|-
|rowspan="3"|[[Vissel Kobe]]
|[[2007 Vissel Kobe season|2007]]
|rowspan="2"|J1 League
|31||14||2||1||5||0||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||38||15
|-
|[[2008 Vissel Kobe season|2008]]
|31||11||1||1||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||32||12
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!62!!25!!3!!2!!5!!0!!colspan="2"|—!!colspan="2"|—!!70!!27
|-
|[[VfL Wolfsburg]]
|[[2008–09 Bundesliga|2008–09]]
|[[Bundesliga]]
|9||0||2||0||colspan="2"|—||2||0||colspan="2"|—||13||0
|-
|rowspan="5"|Vissel Kobe
|[[2009 Vissel Kobe season|2009]]
|rowspan="4"|J1 League
|19||8||1||1||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||20||9
|-
|[[2010 Vissel Kobe season|2010]]
|17||4||1||1||0||0||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||18||5
|-
|[[2011 Vissel Kobe season|2011]]
|30||9||1||0||1||0||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||32||9
|-
|[[2012 Vissel Kobe season|2012]]
|26||4||1||0||3||2||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||30||6
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!92!!25!!4!!2!!4!!2!!colspan="2"|—!!colspan="2"|—!!100!!29
|-
|rowspan="5"|[[Kawasaki Frontale]]
|[[2013 Kawasaki Frontale season|2013]]
|rowspan="4"|J1 League
|33||26||4||3||8||4||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||45||33
|-
|[[2014 Kawasaki Frontale season|2014]]
|32||18||1||0||4||2||8||1||colspan="2"|—||45||21
|-
|[[2015 Kawasaki Frontale season|2015]]
|32||23||3||2||4||2||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||39||27
|-
|[[2016 Kawasaki Frontale season|2016]]
|33||15||6||5||0||0||colspan="2"|—||1||0||40||20
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!130!!82!!14!!10!!16!!8!!8!!1!!1!!0!!169!!101
|-
|[[FC Tokyo]]
|[[2017 FC Tokyo season|2017]]
|rowspan="4"|J1 League
|28||8||0||0||2||1||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||30||9
|-
|Kawasaki Frontale
|[[2018 Kawasaki Frontale season|2018]]
|12||2||0||0||0||0||4||0||1||1||17||3
|-
|rowspan="3"|[[Júbilo Iwata]]
|[[2018 Júbilo Iwata season|2018]]
|17||3||1||0||0||0||colspan="2"|—||1||0||19||3
|-
|[[2019 Júbilo Iwata season|2019]]
|20||1||2||0||0||0||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||22||1
|-
!colspan="2"|Total
!37!!4!!3!!0!!0!!0!!colspan="2"|—!!1!!0!!41!!4
|-
|[[Tokyo Verdy]]
|[[2020 Tokyo Verdy season|2020]]
|J2 League
|19||0||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||19||0
|-
|Cerezo Osaka
|[[2021 J1 League|2021]]
|J1 League
|29||6||2||1||5||0||6||1||colspan="2"|—||42||8
|-
!colspan="3"|Career total
!573!!214!!40!!21!!38!!12!!20!!2!!3!!1!!674!!250
|}

{{notelist}}

===International===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+ Appearances and goals by national team and year
|-
!National team!!Year!!Apps!!Goals
|-
|rowspan="12"|[[Japan national football team|Japan]]
|[[2003 Japan national football team|2003]]||14||0
|-
|[[2004 Japan national football team|2004]]||3||0
|-
|[[2005 Japan national football team|2005]]||2||0
|-
|[[2006 Japan national football team|2006]]||0||0
|-
|[[2007 Japan national football team|2007]]||2||2
|-
|[[2008 Japan national football team|2008]]||12||3
|-
|[[2009 Japan national football team|2009]]||9||0
|-
|[[2010 Japan national football team|2010]]||11||0
|-
|[[2011 Japan national football team|2011]]||0||0
|-
|[[2012 Japan national football team|2012]]||1||0
|-
|[[2013 Japan national football team|2013]]||0||0
|-
|[[2014 Japan national football team|2014]]||6||1
|-
!colspan="2"|Total!!60!!6
|}

:''Scores and results list Japan's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Ōkubo goal.''

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ List of international goals scored by Yoshito Ōkubo<ref name=nationalteam/>
|-
!scope="col"|No.
!scope="col"|Date
!scope="col"|Venue
!scope="col"|Opponent
!scope="col"|Score
!scope="col"|Result
!scope="col"|Competition
|-
| align="center"|1 || rowspan="2"|17 October 2007 || rowspan="2"|[[Osaka]], Japan || rowspan="2"|{{fb|EGY}} || || rowspan="2" style="text-align:center"|4–1 || rowspan="2"|[[2007 Afro-Asian Cup of Nations]]
|-
| align="center"|2 ||
|-
| align="center"|3 || 6 February 2008 || [[Saitama (city)|Saitama]], Japan || {{fb|THA}} || || align="center"|4–1 || [[2010 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC)|2010 FIFA World Cup qualification]]
|-
| align="center"|4 || 2 June 2008 || [[Yokohama]], Japan || {{fb|OMN}} || || align="center"|3–0 || 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
|-
| align="center"|5 || 13 November 2008 || [[Kobe]], Japan || {{fb|SYR}} || || align="center"|3–1 || Friendly
|-
| align="center"|6 || 6 June 2014 || [[Florida]], United States || {{fb|ZAM}} || || align="center"|4–3 || Friendly
|}

==Honours==
'''VfL Wolfsburg'''
*[[Bundesliga]]: [[2008–09 Bundesliga|2008–09]]

'''Individual'''
*[[Asian Young Footballer of the Year]]: 2003<ref>{{cite web | url =https://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/news/newsid=90145.html| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20120928061911/http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/news/newsid=90145.html| url-status =dead| archive-date =28 September 2012| title = Mahdavikia scoops Asian best player award| date = 11 December 2003 | access-date = 5 January 2013 | publisher =[[FIFA]]}}</ref>
*[[J.League Top Scorer]]: [[2013 J.League Division 1#Top scorers|2013]], [[2014 J.League Division 1#Top scorers|2014]], [[2015 J1 League#Top scorers|2015]]
*[[J.League Best XI]]: [[2013 J.League Division 1|2013]], [[2014 J.League Division 1|2014]], [[2015 J1 League|2015]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{FIFA player|180936}}
* {{NFT player|3443}}
* [http://www.jfootball-db.com/en/players/okubo_yoshito.html Japan National Football Team Database]
* {{J.League player|6502}}
* [http://www.frontale.co.jp/profile/2016/mem_13.html Profile at Kawasaki Frontale]
* [http://www.rcdm.es/jugadores-de-ayer-y-de-hoy-yoshito-okubo/ Real Mallorca bio] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170325113021/http://rcdm.es/jugadores-de-ayer-y-de-hoy-yoshito-okubo/ |date=25 March 2017 }} {{in lang|es}}
* {{Soccerway|yoshito-okubo/66184}}

{{Navboxes colour
|title= Awards
|bg= gold
|fg= navy
|list1=
{{Japanese Footballer of the Year}}
{{Asian Young Footballer of the Year}}
{{J1 League top scorers}}
{{2013 J.League Team of the Year}}
{{2014 J.League Team of the Year}}
{{2015 J.League Team of the Year}}
}}
{{Navboxes colour
|title= Japan squads
|bg= mediumblue
|fg= white
|bordercolor= red
|list1=
{{Japan squad 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup}}
{{Japan men's football squad 2004 Summer Olympics}}
{{Japan squad 2010 FIFA World Cup}}
{{Japan squad 2014 FIFA World Cup}}
}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Okubo, Yoshito}}
[[Category:1982 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Men's association football forwards]]
[[Category:Association football people from Fukuoka Prefecture]]
[[Category:Japanese men's footballers]]
[[Category:Japan men's international footballers]]
[[Category:J1 League players]]
[[Category:J2 League players]]
[[Category:La Liga players]]
[[Category:Bundesliga players]]
[[Category:Cerezo Osaka players]]
[[Category:RCD Mallorca players]]
[[Category:Vissel Kobe players]]
[[Category:VfL Wolfsburg players]]
[[Category:Kawasaki Frontale players]]
[[Category:FC Tokyo players]]
[[Category:Júbilo Iwata players]]
[[Category:Tokyo Verdy players]]
[[Category:Footballers at the 2002 Asian Games]]
[[Category:Asian Games medalists in football]]
[[Category:Asian Games silver medalists for Japan]]
[[Category:2003 FIFA Confederations Cup players]]
[[Category:Olympic footballers for Japan]]
[[Category:Footballers at the 2004 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:2010 FIFA World Cup players]]
[[Category:2014 FIFA World Cup players]]
[[Category:Japanese expatriate men's footballers]]
[[Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Spain]]
[[Category:Japanese expatriate sportspeople in Spain]]
[[Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Germany]]
[[Category:Japanese expatriate sportspeople in Germany]]
[[Category:Asian Young Footballer of the Year winners]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2002 Asian Games]]