Takehiro Tomiyasu shared an emotional moment with his former Arsenal teammate following Japan’s World Cup exit
Japan’s World Cup came to a painful end after Arsenal winger Gabriel Martinelli scored a 95 th -minute winner to send Brazil to the last-16. On the losing side was one of the winger’s former teammates from North London, Takehiro Tomiyasu.
Having left the Gunners last summer, after an agreement was found to terminate his deal, following a spate of injuries, the then-26-year-old was left without a club. He played just 9 minutes of the 2024/25 season and suffered two major knee injuries.
It was not until December that Ajax agreed to sign the defender on a six-month deal. He made nine appearances for the Dutch side before his contract expired at the end of the season, leaving him, for now, without a club ahead of the 2026/27 campaign.
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Despite his free-agent status, he was called up to Japan’s World Cup squad. He played in three of their four games, coming off the bench in the 2-2 draw with the Netherlands.
He started in the 4-0 win over Tunisia but was an unused substitute as he watched on from the bench as his team drew 1-1 with Sweden. But for the last-32 clash against Brazil, he was selected to start again.
He was not at fault for Casemiro’s equaliser after Japan had taken the lead, but he gave his former teammate Martinelli too much space to receive the ball from Bruno Guimaraes. By which point, it was too late to recover and block the shot that would send Brazil through.
After the match, pictures showed that Gabriel Magalhaes, a former defensive partner of Tomiyasu’s at Arsenal, had gone to console his old teammate. Ironically, Marquinhos had joined him, the same player who had consoled Gabriel after missing his penalty against Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League final.
What comes next for Tomiyasu remains to be seen. However, if he stays fit, there is no doubt about the quality he has, with many years left to give.
