Celtic player’s classy address to Japanese students in online broadcast
Soccer Football - Scottish Premiership - Celtic v Heart of Midlothian - Celtic Park, Glasgow, Scotland, Britain - May 7, 2022 Celtic players celebrate after the match Action Images via Reuters/Carl Recine
As a Celtic player, we don’t really know much about Tomoki Iwata. We have seen fleeting glimpses of the Japanese midfielder and the early indications are that he looks like a very classy player.
Last season, he excelled for Yokohama F Marino’s where the 25-year-old was voted the J League’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) which led Ange Postecoglou to swoop in and get him on a loan deal in January with an option to buy for £1m. [The Scotsman]
And with his performances for Yokohama comes the immediate fame that precedes that.
And Iwata has used his position as MVP to reach out and address pupils from schools around Nakatsu City where he shared his experiences about becoming a professional footballer with youngsters who are hoping to make it in the game.
The midfielder moved from Trinita to Yokohama before eventually earning his move to Celtic and, as reported by FNN, Iwata told the students, “At Trinita, I wanted to be better than anyone else.”
Over 100 pupils took part in Q&A and whilst the video was in Japanese and I couldn’t get a translation of all the conversation, it shows a touch of class from the Celtic midfielder that he took the time out of his day to help and encourage young children to follow their dreams in football.