Kazuyoshi Miura, set to turn 59 next month and is the world's oldest professional footballer, has signed a temporary transfer until June with J3 League club Fukushima United.
This move means Miura might feature in the J.League - encompassing the highest tiers of Japanese football - for the first time in half a decade.
The former Japan striker, who started his career with Brazilian side Santos in 1986, did not find the net in just over an hour across seven outings last season while on loan at JFL side Atletico Suzuka.
"My love for the game hasn't changed, no matter how old I get," he said as he prepares for a forty-first campaign as a pro footballer.
"I'm very grateful to be presented with this chance. I vow I will play with everything I have to help the team. Together, we can create a legacy!"
Referred to as 'King Kazu' in Japan, this will be Miura's fourth loan since 2022 from J2 League side Yokohama FC.
The veteran, who has also played club football in Italy, Croatia and Australia, signed for the club in 2005 but has remained absent from the pitch for them since 2020.
He scored 55 goals in 89 games in an career for the national team that ended in 2000, two years after his surprising exclusion from the squad for Japan's first World Cup finals appearance.
Miura, who has expressed a desire for continuing his career into his seventh decade, said he was ready to "embrace a fresh test" after being demoted last season to the country's lower regional divisions.
Fukushima ended the season in tenth place in the twenty-club J3 League last season.
