FIRST TEAM
05/23/2012

1899 seal Usami loan deal

TSG 1899 Hoffenheim have completed the loan signing of Japanese winger Takashi Usami from J. League side Gamba Osaka. The 20-year-old right-sided midfielder will spend the coming 2012/13 season in Sinsheim, with Hoffenheim having first refusal on a permanent transfer. He has spent this season on loan at German record title-winners FC Bayern Munich.

TSG head coach Markus Babbel said of the deal: “Takashi Usami will give us more variation in attack. He is very ambitious, versatile, quick and technically strong and has a good end product. We look forward to having him here.” And Usami was equally delighted with the transfer. “I want to establish myself in the Bundesliga and that means playing matches. I want to earn a place in the team by working hard in training and help this club achieve success,” he said.

In 2009 Usami made history in his homeland when he became the youngest player to make his debut in the Asian Champions League, aged just 17 years and 14 days. Shortly afterwards he made his first appearance in the J. league, being named Best Young Player in the 2009-10 season.

He moved to FC Bayern at the beginning of the 2011/12 season. In total, he made three Bundesliga appearances, one in the German Cup and one in the UEFA Champions League. He also featured 16 times for Bayern's reserve team, scoring six goals. He played in his country's youth teams from the U16s to U19s, before he was called up to the Japan senior squad in 2011.

Profile:

Name: Takashi Usami

Date of Birth: 06.05.1992

Nationality: Japanese

Height/Weight: 5'9” / 70kg

Appearances/Goals (Bundesliga): 3/0

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