FC Bayern have completed the signing of defender Hiroki Ito from VfB Stuttgart. The 25-year-old Japan international has put pen to paper on a contract with the German record champions until 30 June 2028.
Max Eberl, FC Bayern board member for sport: “We’re delighted that we’ve signed Hiroki Ito for FC Bayern. We want hungry players who are going to bring in fresh energy, and Hiroki has everything we want: he’s a player who embraces challenges, overcomes them and continues to make his way in the game. He already has a lot of experience for a 25-year-old and can handle pressure, whether it’s in a relegation play-off or when playing for the Champions League. He’ll really strengthen us straight away.”
Christoph Freund, FC Bayern sporting director: “Hiroki Ito was reliability personified at VfB Stuttgart. He produced consistent performances at a top level, which attracted the attention of several big clubs. Hiroki is tall, aggressive, has a strong left foot, an excellent passing game and is versatile in defence because he can play on both the left side as well as centrally. He came to Germany as a young player, has made great progress and we’re sure that there’s still further potential in him.”
Hiroki Ito: “It’s a great honour for me to be able to play for one of the biggest clubs in the world. FC Bayern is also a big name in Japan. I always gave my all for VfB Stuttgart and am grateful to the club. Now I’m looking forward to the challenge in Munich and I want to play my part in FC Bayern winning lots of trophies. It was time to take a new step, and for me FC Bayern is the perfect club to do so.”
Here are the first images of Hiroki Ito at Bayern:
Ito took his first steps as a footballer in the youth system of Japanese top-flight club Júbilo Iwata, where he signed his first professional contract in 2018. Ito made a total of 60 league appearances for Júbilo Iwata and on loan for Nagoya Grampus (four goals), before joining Stuttgart ahead of the 2021/22 season. He featured in 97 competitive games for the Swabians, scoring two goals.
Having represented his country at youth level, Ito made his senior debut for Japan in June 2022 and has since gone on to amass 19 caps and one goal. He also featured at the 2022 World Cup, where his team reached the knockout stages and lost narrowly on penalties to Croatia in the round of 16.
A closer look at Bayern's new recruit:
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