Junya Itō

Junya Itō (伊東 純也, Itō Jun'ya, born 9 March 1993) is a Japanese professional footballer who plays as a winger or a forward for Ligue 1 club Reims and the Japan national team.

Junya Itō

Itō playing for Genk in 2019
Personal information
Full name	Junya Itō^[1]
Date of birth	(1993-03-09) 9 March 1993 (age 31)
Place of birth	Yokosuka, Kanagawa, Japan
Height	1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s)	Winger, forward
Team information
Current team	Reims
Number	7
Youth career
	Kamoi SC
0000–2007	Yokosuka Seagulls
2008–2010	Kanagawa Zuyo High School
2011–2014	Kanagawa University
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2015	Ventforet Kofu	30	(4)
2016–2020	Kashiwa Reysol	101	(19)
2019–2020	→ Genk (loan)	42	(8)
2020–2022	Genk	78	(19)
2022–	Reims	62	(9)
International career^‡
2017–	Japan	54	(13)
Medal record Representing  Japan AFC Asian Cup 2019 United Arab Emirates
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 10 May 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 24 January 2024 (UTC)

Club career

After attending Kanagawa University for four years,^[2] Itō first became a Special Designated Player for Ventforet Kofu,^[3] and then obtained a new contract with the J1 League side.^[4]

His first season as a professional player attracted attention from Kashiwa Reysol. The Chiba club signed him in January 2016.^[5]

On 31 January 2019, Junya Itō moved from Kashiwa Reysol to Genk on a one-year loan deal.^[6] On 18 September, he made his Champions League debut as a starter in the group stage match against Red Bull Salzburg. On 30 March 2020, Ito signed permanently with Genk on a three-year contract.^[7]

On 29 July 2022, Itō joined Ligue 1 club Reims.^[8]

On 23 October 2022, he scored the winner in a 2–1 victory against Auxerre.^[9] In the 2023–24 Ligue 1 opening game on 12 August, Ito scored a stunning goal against Ligue 1 powerhouse Marseille to open the scoring, but his team eventually lost 2–1.

International career

Ito made his Japan national team debut in 2017.

He was part of the Japan team that finished runner-up in the 2019 Asian Cup.

In the 2022 WC qualifiers, he scored four goals in four consecutive games, the last two being winning goals against Vietnam and Oman respectively.

He was selected for Hajime Moriyasu's final World Cup squad in October 2022.^[10]

Adultery and sexual assault allegations

On 31 January 2024, the Daily Shincho reported that police had launched an investigation into Ito following a criminal complaint filed by two women alleging that he had engaged in sexual conduct with them while they were intoxicated at a hotel in Osaka without their consent after a match for Japan against Peru in June 2023.^[11]

In response to this report, the Japan Football Association decided on February 1 to withdraw Ito from the ongoing 2023 AFC Asian Cup after considering Ito's physical and mental condition. Meanwhile, Ito filed a criminal complaint against the two women with the Osaka Prefectural Police for filing false complaints.^[12]

On 19 February, Ito filed a lawsuit against the two women at the Osaka District Court, claiming that their sponsorship contracts were terminated due to false complaints and demanding 200 million yen in damages.^[13]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 10 May 2024^{[14][15][16][17]}

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup		League cup		Continental		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Ventforet Kofu	2015	J1 League	30	4	2	0	6	0	—		—		38	4
Kashiwa Reysol	2016	J1 League	33	7	2	0	6	0	—		—		41	7
	2017	J1 League	34	6	4	0	4	0	—		—		42	6
	2018	J1 League	34	6	1	1	0	0	6^[a]	2	—		41	9
	Total		101	19	7	1	10	0	6	2	—		124	22
Genk (loan)	2018–19	Belgian Pro League	13	3	0	0	—		1^[b]	0	—		14	3
	2019–20	Belgian Pro League	29	5	2	1	—		6^[c]	0	1^[d]	0	38	6
	Total		42	8	2	1	—		6	0	1	0	52	9
Genk	2020–21	Belgian Pro League	38	11	4	1	—		—		—		42	12
	2021–22	Belgian Pro League	39	8	1	0	—		8^[e]	0	1^[d]	0	49	8
	2022–23	Belgian Pro League	1	0	—		—		—		—		1	0
	Total		78	19	5	1	—		8	0	1	0	92	20
Reims	2022–23	Ligue 1	33	6	0	0	—		—		—		33	6
	2023–24	Ligue 1	29	3	0	0	—		—		—		29	3
	Total		62	9	0	0	—		—		—		62	9
Career total			313	58	16	3	16	0	21	2	2	0	368	64

1. Appearance(s) in AFC Champions League
2. Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa League
3. Appearance(s) in UEFA Champions League
4. Appearance in Belgian Super Cup
5. Two appearances in UEFA Champions League, six appearances in UEFA Europa League

International

As of match played 24 January 2024^[18]

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Japan	2017	3	0
	2018	4	2
	2019	10	0
	2020	3	0
	2021	9	5
	2022	13	2
	2023	8	4
	2024	4	0
Total		54	13

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

List of international goals scored by Junya Itō^[19]

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	11 September 2018	Panasonic Stadium Suita, Suita, Japan	Costa Rica	3–0	3–0	2018 Kirin Challenge Cup
2	12 October 2018	Denka Big Swan Stadium, Niigata, Japan	Panama	2–0	3–0	2018 Kirin Challenge Cup
3	30 March 2021	Fukuda Denshi Arena, Chiba, Japan	Mongolia	8–0	14–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
4				10–0
5	11 June 2021	Noevir Stadium Kobe, Kobe, Japan	Serbia	1–0	1–0	Friendly
6	11 November 2021	Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam	Vietnam	1–0	1–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
7	16 November 2021	Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Muscat, Oman	Oman	1–0	1–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
8	27 January 2022	Saitama Stadium 2002, Saitama, Japan	China	2–0	2–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
9	1 February 2022	Saitama Stadium 2002, Saitama, Japan	Saudi Arabia	2–0	2–0	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
10	20 June 2023	Panasonic Stadium Suita, Suita, Japan	Peru	3–0	4–1	2023 Kirin Challenge Cup
11	9 September 2023	Volkswagen Arena, Wolfsburg, Germany	Germany	1–0	4–1	Friendly
12	12 September 2023	Cegeka Arena, Genk, Belgium	Turkey	4–2	4–2	2023 Kirin Challenge Cup
13	17 October 2023	Noevir Stadium Kobe, Kobe, Japan	Tunisia	2–0	2–0	2023 Kirin Challenge Cup

Honours

Genk

• Belgian First Division: 2018–19
• Belgian Cup: 2020–21^[20]
• Belgian Super Cup: 2019

Individual

• Japan Pro-Footballers Association awards: Best XI (2022, 2023)^[21]

References

1. "FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 – Squad list: Japan (JPN)" (PDF). FIFA. 15 November 2022. p. 16. (PDF) from the original on 30 November 2022. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
2. . Archived from the original on 28 October 2018. Retrieved 30 May 2016.
3. ヴァンフォーレ山梨スポーツクラブ. "神奈川大学 伊東純也選手 来季新加入内定のお知らせ". from the original on 12 March 2020. Retrieved 30 May 2016.
4. FromOne co., Ltd. . Archived from the original on 4 June 2016.
5. . Archived from the original on 9 January 2016. Retrieved 30 May 2016.
6. "Football: Japan winger Junya Ito reveals title ambitions with Genk". Kyodo News+. 12 February 2019. from the original on 12 March 2020. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
7. "Japanner Ito blijft definitief bij Genk: "Hij is een publiekslieveling"". sporza.be (in Dutch). 30 March 2020. from the original on 20 September 2022. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
8. Projects, Sanmax. "Junya Ito onderweg naar Stade Reims | KRC Genk". www.krcgenk.be (in Dutch). from the original on 12 August 2022. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
9. "Reims vs. Auxerre 2–1". Soccerway.com. 23 October 2022. Retrieved 29 December 2023.
10. "Moriyasu names Japan squad for Qatar 2022". FIFA.com. 31 October 2022.
11. "Football: Japan player Junya Ito probed over sexual assault allegation". Kyodo News. 31 January 2024.
12. (in Japanese). Nikkan Sports. 1 February 2024. Archived from the original on 1 February 2024. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
13. (in Japanese). Yahoo Japan News. 19 February 2024. Archived from the original on 19 February 2024. Retrieved 19 February 2024.
14. Nippon Sports Kikaku Publishing inc./日本スポーツ企画出版社, "J1&J2&J3選手名鑑ハンディ版 2018 (NSK MOOK)" 13 July 2022 at the Wayback Machine, 6 January 2021, Japan, ISBN 978-4905411529 (p. 34 out of 289)
15. Nippon Sports Kikaku Publishing inc./日本スポーツ企画出版社, "2016J1&J2&J3選手名鑑" 15 December 2019 at the Wayback Machine, 10 February 2016, Japan, ISBN 978-4905411338 (p. 84 out of 289)
16. Nippon Sports Kikaku Publishing inc./日本スポーツ企画出版社, "2017 J1&J2&J3選手名鑑 (NSK MOOK)" 15 December 2019 at the Wayback Machine, 8 February 2017, Japan, ISBN 978-4905411420 (p. 66 out of 289)
17. Junya Itō at Soccerway
18. Japan National Football Team Database 12 March 2020 at the Wayback Machine(in Japanese)
19. "Ito, Junya". National Football Teams. from the original on 6 March 2022. Retrieved 19 September 2018.
20. "Onuachu with an assist as Genk clinch Belgian Cup title after Standard Liege win". Goal. 26 April 2021. from the original on 1 May 2021. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
21. Japan Pro-Footballers Association awards

External links

• Profile at Kashiwa Reysol
• Junya Itō at J.League () (in Japanese)