DBasia.news – Not to be outdone by Real Madrid who recruited a former La Masia, Takefusa Kubo, Barcelona also recruited other Japanese talents, Hiroki Abe.
Hiroki Abe, who plays as a wing, was brought in by Barcelona from Japanese club Kashima Antlers. Abe himself is called one of the best young players in Japan at the moment.
“We are pleased to announce that an agreement between the clubs has been reached regarding the transfer of Hiroki Abe to FC Barcelona. After the medical test he will sign a contract,” said an official statement from Kashima Antlers.
For Abe, despite his pride, he claimed he was severely separated from his colleagues at Kashima Antlers.
“It was a difficult decision to leave Kashima mid-season, but I chose to move because I really wanted a new challenge at Barcelona,” Abe said who was projected to first join Barcelona B as quoted by the Reuters.
Abe’s prestige began to stick out after he became the 2018 J-League Young Best Player of the Year. Abe is known to have a style similar to Antoine Griezmann and Neymar, two players who are called busy are going to dock at Barcelona. No wonder Barcelona are interested in getting him.
From the side of the game, Abe is said to have an advantage in controlling the ball. The speed of the foot makes him often easily pass the opponent. Not only that, but Abe also has a vision of the game that is above average for players his age.
Even though he was of great talent, the player born on January 28, 1999, was still lacking in terms of sharp scoring. Together with Kashima Antlers who have been strengthening since 2017, Abe has only made 10 goals and seven assists in 79 matches. For this season, Abe only made one goal in 14 appearances.
Abe, 20, began to seriously pursue football when at Setouchi High School in 2014. Abe had a share in bringing his team into the last eight of the national championship held in Hiroshima Prefecture.
In September 2016, Abe joined the J-League club, Kashima Antlers. However, he only officially became a professional player with Kashima in 2017, when he was 18 years old.
Abe made his debut as a professional player on April 1, 2017. He came on as a substitute when Kashima beat Omiya Ardija 1-0. While his debut as a starter occurred when Kashima hosted Jubilo Iwata on April 22, 2017. Kashima was defeated 3-0 and Abe was pulled out early in the second half.
The 2017-18 season was the beginning of getting the spotlight. Abe recorded 22 games after the previous period only appeared 13 times. Not only that, but Abe also contributed
Kashima won the Asian Champions League. In this event, he contributed one goal in eight appearances.
Abe’s brilliance with Kashima made him look at the Japanese national team. As a result, Abe made his debut with the Blue Samurai Team on June 18, 2019, against Chile in the 2019 Copa America. Now Abe has defended Japan three times, all of which happened at the Copa America yesterday.