The Belgian team's fortunes changed thanks to a Japanese player.

Sint-Truiden are in contention for the Belgian championship this season.

From a team struggling to avoid relegation last season, STVV unexpectedly rose to second place in the Belgian Pro League standings, just one point behind leaders Union Saint-Gilloise. In round 24, STVV secured a resounding 4-0 victory against Westerlo on February 7th, solidifying their position in the title race.

This is clear evidence of the transformation of the Limburg-based team. The key factor in STVV's turnaround is the influx of Japanese players, who are making a huge contribution to the team's success.

For a long time, STVV has possessed a large pool of talent from Japan, thanks to its close ties with its Japanese owner and its continuous recruitment strategy from the J.League. The club's owner since 2017 has been DMM, an e-commerce company.

Currently, Sint-Truiden's squad has 8 Japanese players, making it one of the most heavily "Japanized" European teams. The standout players at STVV are the trio of Rihito Yamamoto, Keisuke Goto, and Ryotaro Ito.

The Japanese stars are helping Sint-Truiden compete for the championship.

Goto, the 20-year-old striker on loan from Anderlecht, is currently the team's top scorer with 9 goals and 3 assists in 22 matches. He has become a key player in the attack, not only scoring regularly but also demonstrating effective pressing ability.

In their emphatic 4-0 victory against Westerlo on February 7th, seven Japanese players started, from goalkeeper Leo Kokubo to center-backs like Shogo Taniguchi, as well as midfielders and forwards. Many even jokingly said that STVV looked more like a team playing in the J League, with their "7 Japanese players + 4 foreign players" formula.

In the 4-0 victory over Westerlo, the Japanese players shone brightly, contributing to all four goals. Yamamoto scored a brace, Goto also scored and assisted. French midfielder Abdoulaye Sissako scored the remaining goal, but he also received an assist from Taniguchi.

Historically, STVV has never won the Belgian league title. The club's best achievement was finishing as runners-up in 1965. However, the club has steadily improved since recruiting Japanese players.

By making the most of resources from the Land of the Rising Sun, Sint-Truidense is competing for a Champions League spot, and even a title race, becoming a phenomenon in Belgian football this season.

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Source: https://znews.vn/doi-bong-bi-doi-van-nho-cau-thu-nhat-ban-post1626255.html