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Team Index Albirex Niigata Kashima Antlers Omiya Ardija Avispa Fukuoka Shonan Bellmare Cerezo Osaka Consadole Sapporo Ehime FC Kawasaki Frontale Gamba Osaka Nagoya Grampus Gifu FC Mito Hollyhock JEF United Jubilo Iwata Yokohama Marinos Montedio Yamagata Urawa Reds Kashiwa Reysol Roasso Kumamoto Sagan Tosu Sanfrecce Hiroshima Kyoto Sanga Shimizu S-Pulse Thespa Kusatsu FC Tokyo Oita Trinita Vegalta Sendai Ventforet Kofu Tokyo Verdy Vissel Kobe Tokushima Vortis Yokohama FC | |
Fame comes to different people in different ways, and Keiji Ishizuka earned a high profile in the Japanese soccer world, during the J.League's first decade, as much for what he failed to accomplish as for what he actually did. Ishizuka's finest performances came with Verdy Kawasaki, during their glory years, yet his statistics duyring this period were rather tame, due partly to the fact that he was a backup player filling in for even brighter stars such as Nobuhiro Takeda and Kazu Miura. Ishizuka was born in Japan, but his parents moved to Paraguay while he was still a child, an he spent much of his youth growing up in Paraguay. He returned to Japan in 1994 to play for Verdy, but received only a few appearances and decided to try his luck back in South America. After a year at Mamore, in Brazil, he came back again to Verdy, and this time saw a bit more action. But the team was in a transitional phase and the head office decided to rent Ishizuka out to Consadole Sapporo (then a member of the JFL) for half the 1997 season. He duly contributed to Consadole's advance to the J.League, and by the time he got back to Verdy, found conditions a bit more settled, and had the best three years of his career between 1998 and 2000. But Ishizuka never really settled in. Perhaps it was his overseas upbringing, or perhaps the fact that Verdy were in a tailspin and heading towards the bottom end of the league table. Whatever the case, in mid-2001 he left Japan again, travelling to Hollland and Belgium to try to find a team. After a few brief stints with second- and third-division clubs, he finally abandoned the effort and came back to Japan once more. After a brief stint with Kawasaki Frontale, he moved to Nagoya Grampus,but failed to fit in there, either. Ishizuka tried one last time to find work overseas, but by the end of the 2003 season, he had to accept that his playing days were over, and announced his retirement. Though the final statistics for his J.League career may seem less than impressive, Ishizuka certainly was a colorful figure who earned his share of fame, and he was certainly an important contributor to the J.League in its formative years
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