Kanya Fujimoto (藤本 寛也, Fujimoto Kanya; born 1 July 1999) is a Japanese footballer who plays as a central midfielder or attacking midfielder for Birmingham City of the EFL Championship.
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Kanya Fujimoto[1] | |||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 1 July 1999 | |||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Yamanashi, Japan | |||||||||||||
| Height | 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in) | |||||||||||||
| Position | Midfielder | |||||||||||||
| Team information | ||||||||||||||
Current team | Birmingham City | |||||||||||||
| Number | 27 | |||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||
| Amigos FC | ||||||||||||||
| FC Valie Tsuru | ||||||||||||||
| 2012–2017 | Tokyo Verdy | |||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||
| 2018–2022 | Tokyo Verdy | 49 | (4) | |||||||||||
| 2020–2022 | → Gil Vicente (loan) | 59 | (4) | |||||||||||
| 2022–2025 | Gil Vicente | 97 | (8) | |||||||||||
| 2025– | Birmingham City | 4 | (0) | |||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||
| 2018 | Japan U19 | 3 | (0) | |||||||||||
| 2019 | Japan U20 | 3 | (0) | |||||||||||
Medal record
| ||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 1 October 2025 | ||||||||||||||
Early life
editKanya was born in Yamanashi.
Career
editTokyo Verdy
editAfter being raised on Tokyo Verdy youth ranks, Fujimoto was promoted to the top team in October 2017.[2] He debuted in a J2 League game in the opening match of the 2018 season against JEF United Chiba.[3] He scored his first goal for the club against Fagiano Okayama on 27 June 2018, scoring in the 20th minute.[4]
Gil Vicente
editIn May 2020, Portuguese newspaper A Bola reported advanced talks for a move to Gil Vicente for the 2020-21 season, in a one-year loan with an option to buy his contract.[5] The move was confirmed on 5 August 2020, as he signed for the Portuguese club on loan with an option for them to buy out his contract.[6] He made his debut for Gil against Santa Clara on 3 October 2020.[7] He scored his first goal for the club against Sporting CP on 9 February 2021, scoring in the 36th minute.[8]
Birmingham City
editOn 6 July 2025, Fujimoto joined Championship club Birmingham City on a three-year deal.[9] On 26 August 2025, he made his debut for the Blues, being substituted off at half-time in a 1–0 EFL Cup defeat to Port Vale.[10]
Career statistics
edit- As of match played 30 September 2025[11]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Tokyo Verdy | 2018 | J2 League | 25 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 25 | 3 | |
| 2019 | J2 League | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 16 | 0 | ||
| 2020 | J2 League | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 8 | 1 | ||
| Total | 49 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 49 | 4 | |||
| Gil Vicente (loan) | 2020–21 | Primeira Liga | 27 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 31 | 1 | |
| 2021–22 | Primeira Liga | 32 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | 35 | 3 | ||
| Gil Vicente | 2022–23 | Primeira Liga | 34 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 4[c] | 0 | 44 | 1 |
| 2023–24 | Primeira Liga | 33 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | – | 38 | 5 | ||
| 2024–25 | Primeira Liga | 30 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 33 | 5 | ||
| Total | 156 | 12 | 14 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 181 | 15 | ||
| Birmingham City | 2025–26[12] | Championship | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | |
| Career total | 206 | 16 | 14 | 2 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 232 | 19 | ||
- ↑ Includes Emperor's Cup, Taça de Portugal, FA Cup
- ↑ Includes J.League Cup, Taça da Liga, EFL Cup
- ↑ Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
Honours
editIndividual
- Primeira Liga Midfielder of the Month: September/October 2024,
References
edit- ↑ "FIFA U-20 World Cup Poland 2019: List of Players: Japan" (PDF). FIFA. 13 June 2019. p. 7. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 February 2020.
- ↑ "U-18世代の10番、東京VユースMF藤本寛也が来季のトップ昇格内定". ゲキサカ (in Japanese). 7 October 2017. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
- ↑ "増嶋がわずか9分で退場…東京V、後半45分の劇的弾で白星発進". ゲキサカ (in Japanese). 25 February 2018. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
- ↑ "Fagiano Okayama vs Tokyo Verdy - 27 June 2018". int.soccerway.com.
- ↑ "A BOLA". A Bola (in Portuguese). Retrieved 29 September 2021.
- ↑ "A BOLA". A Bola (in Portuguese). Retrieved 29 September 2021.
- ↑ "Santa Clara vs Gil Vicente - 3 October 2020". int.soccerway.com.
- ↑ "Gil Vicente vs Sporting Lisbon - 9 February 2021". int.soccerway.com.
- ↑ "Blues complete signing of Kanya Fujimoto". www.bcfc.com. Retrieved 6 July 2025.
- ↑ Dicken, Alan (26 August 2025). "Birmingham City player ratings vs Port Vale: Fujimoto and Ducksch struggle in shock defeat". Birmingham Live. Retrieved 1 October 2025.
- ↑ Nippon Sports Kikaku Publishing inc./日本スポーツ企画出版社, "J1&J2&J3選手名鑑ハンディ版 2018 (NSK MOOK)", 7 February 2018, Japan, ISBN 978-4905411529 (p. 173 out of 289)
- ↑ "Games played by Kanya Fujimoto in 2025/2026". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 October 2025.
External links
edit- Kanya Fujimoto at J.League (archive) (in Japanese)
- Kanya Fujimoto at Soccerway
- Profile at J. League Archived 23 August 2018 at the Wayback Machine
- Profile at Tokyo Verdy Archived 24 August 2018 at the Wayback Machine
