Shinji Kagawa

Shinji Kagawa is a Japanese professional footballer, who plays for ‘Borussia Dortmund’ and the Japanese national football team. He plays as an attacking midfielder and is a dependable playmaker, famous for his razor-sharp technique. At the age of 17, he signed a contract with ‘Cerezo Osaka,’ making him the first Japanese player to sign a professional contract before graduating from high school. He holds the record for both the highest number of appearances and the highest number of goals scored by a Japanese player in the ‘Union of European Football Association’ (UEFA) club competitions. Beginning his professional football career with the Japanese football team ‘Cerezo Osaka,’ he went on to play for clubs, such as ‘Borussia Dortmund’ and ‘Manchester United.’ After playing for ‘Borussia Dortmund’ for two years, between 2010 and 2012, Kagawa signed a four-year contract with ‘Manchester United.’ Two years later, in 2014, he returned to ‘Borussia Dortmund.’ In 2013, he made his debut appearance in the ‘Bundesliga,’ as part of ‘Borussia Dortmund.’ In January 2012, ‘Manchester United’ signed an agreement with ‘Borussia Dortmund’ and Kagawa for his transfer, making him the first Japanese player to join ‘Manchester United.’ In 2013, he scored his first hat-trick, for ‘Manchester United,’ in a match against ‘Norwich City,’ thereby becoming the first Asian footballer to score a hat-trick in the ‘Premier League.’