Southampton signed Japanese central defender Maya Yoshida in the summer of 2012 as they prepared to return to the Premier League after a seven-year absence.
Russell Martin has the same task this summer – albeit following just one year out of the top flight – and is busy assembling a squad capable of competing amongst England’s finest next season.
That has seen six players arrive at the club, with Taylor Harwood-Bellis, Adam Lallana, Charlie Taylor, Nathan Wood and Ronnie Edwards all joining before being joined by Yukinari Sugawara most recently.
The similarities between the career of Sugawara and Yoshida are intriguing, as they both started at Nagoya Grampus before moving to the Netherlands and signing for the Saints ahead of a Premier League return.
Yoshida has now helped cement his cult legend status at St Mary’s with a heartwarming message to Sugawara following his £5.88 million move.
Maya Yoshida welcomes Yukinari Sugawara to Southampton
Remarkably, as well as their almost identical career paths, Yoshida was 24 when he arrived at Southampton in 2021 – the same age Sugawara is now.
Never the most gifted player at the club, Yoshida earned the appreciation of the Southampton faithful through his commitment and determination across his eight years on the south coast.
Having amassed 194 appearances for the Saints and scored nine goals, Yoshida moved on to Sampdoria permanently in summer 2020 following a six-month loan.
He is still playing at the age of 35, plying his trade at MLS club LA Galaxy and he has shown he is still holds Southampton very much in his heart with a message to new signing Sugawara.
In a video posted on Southampton’s official ‘X’ account, Yoshida welcomed his compatriot before talking up his former club.
Yoshida said: “Hello Yukinari, welcome to the club. First of all, I would like to congratulate you on your move.
“I think it’s a great choice. As we discussed already before, the club is really welcoming and they know the Japanese mentality and you can improve a lot on the pitch – off the pitch as well – and I’m sure that you can bring great energy on the pitch and also great atmosphere in the dressing room.
“So, let’s enjoy your time. It’s really precious, the Premier League is one of the best and Southampton is a really great club and I’ve been there for a long time.
“Any time you have any questions or problems, just call me wherever I am. I am always with you and I hope I can watch you after my season is over, come to watch a game.
“Good luck. And to the fans: please look after him very well.”
Sugawara should draw inspiration from Yoshida Southampton career
Yoshida’s Southampton story is one of resilience and hard work.
After struggling early in his Premier League career, the 127-cap Japan international showed he was a very reliable performer who would never cause any problems for any of his six managers at the St Mary’s club.
A solid performer alongside the likes of Virgil van Dijk and Jose Fonte, Yoshida made the most of his talents to forge a decent career and Sugawara could draw inspiration from a player he has called his “legend”.
Speaking to the official Southampton club website, Sugawara spoke of the influence Yoshida has had on him as he revealed: “I talked to Maya first.
“He sent me a text one day, ‘you want to go to Southampton?’ and he said some football things, but after that he just said to me ‘you can live in my house!’
“He called me and I asked about football things, but he just said ‘live in my house!’ Maya is my legend, because I grew up in almost the same steps. I played for the same club in Japan, and me and him went to the Netherlands, and then to Southampton, so everything the same. I asked him a lot.”
If Sugawara can finish his Southampton career with half the love from the fans as Yoshida has then he would have done very well for himself.
