is a former Japanese

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player and manager He is the current manager

J2 League The or simply J2 is the second division of the and the second level of the Japanese association football league system. The top tier is represented by the J1 League. It (along with the rest of the J.League) is currently sponsored by Meiji Yas ...

club of

Vegalta Sendai is a Japanese professional football club, currently playing in J2 League. The team is located in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture. History Founded in 1988 as ''Tohoku Electric Power Co., Inc. Soccer Club'', Vegalta joined the J-League in 1999 after p ...

Playing career

Ito was born in Niiza on September 19, 1972. After graduating from

Kokushikan University is a private university in Setagaya, Tokyo, Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan. Combined teams of the Graduate School of Engineering and the Department of Science and Engineering competed against 130 team and came in 11th place in the 27th Formula SAE in 20 ...

, he joined

Japan Football League The also known as simply the JFL is the 4th tier of the Japanese association football league system, positioned beneath the three divisions of the J.League. The league features fully professional teams that hold J.League associate membership am ...

club

Fujitsu is a Japanese multinational information and communications technology equipment and services corporation, established in 1935 and headquartered in Tokyo. Fujitsu is the world's sixth-largest IT services provider by annual revenue, and the la ...

(later ''Kawasaki Frontale'') in 1995. He played many matches as offensive midfielder and forward from first season. Although his opportunity to play decreased in 1997, he became a regular player in 1998 and the club was promoted to

from 1999. In 1999, the club won the champions and was promoted to

J1 League The , known as the for sponsorship reasons, is the top level of the system. Founded in 1992, it is one of the most successful leagues in Asian club football. Contested by 18 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the J ...

from 2000. In 2000, although the club gained many players and his opportunity to play decreased, the club won the 2nd place

J.League Cup The is a Japanese football (soccer) competition organized by J.League. It has been sponsored by Yamazaki Biscuits (YBC) of Yamazaki Baking (formerly Yamazaki Nabisco) since its inception in 1992. It is also known as the or (Levain is one of YB ...

. However the club results were bad in league competition and the club was relegated to J2 in a year. Although he played many matches as regular player in 2001, he was released from the club end of 2001 season. In 2002, he moved to J2 club

Omiya Ardija is a professional association football club based in Ōmiya in Saitama, Japan. Its "hometown" as designated by the league is the whole of Saitama city, which is shared with neighbours Urawa Red Diamonds. Omiya competed in the J1 League follow ...

in based in his local

Saitama Prefecture is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Saitama Prefecture has a population of 7,338,536 (1 January 2020) and has a geographic area of 3,797 km2 (1,466 sq mi). Saitama Prefecture borders Tochigi Prefecture ...

. He played many matches as regular player in 2 seasons. In 2004, he moved to J2 club

Sagan Tosu is a Japanese professional football club, currently playing in the J1 League. The team is located in Tosu, Saga Prefecture. ''Sagan'' is a coined word with a couple of meanings behind it. One of its homophones is in Japanese. This symbolises ...

and played many matches as side midfielder. In 2005, he moved to newly was promoted to

club,

Tokushima Vortis is a Japanese professional football club, currently playing in the J2 League. The team is located in Tokushima, Tokushima Prefecture. Their home stadium is Naruto Otsuka Sports Park Pocari Sweat Stadium, in Naruto, Tokushima. The name, "Vortis ...

. He played many matches as side midfielder in 2 seasons and retired end of 2006 season.

Coaching career

After retirement, Ito started coaching career at

in 2007. He coached for youth team until 2015. In 2016, he became a top team coach under manager Hiroki Shibuya. In May 2017, the club results were bad and Shibuya was sacked and Ito became a new manager as Shibuya successor. However the club result did not improve and Ito was sacked in November. In 2018, he signed with

Ventforet Kofu is a Japanese football club from Kōfu in Yamanashi Prefecture. The team currently competes in the J2 League and play their home games in JIT Recycle Ink Stadium, located in Kōfu. The word "Ventforet" is a compound formed from two French roo ...

and became a coach. In 2019, he became a manager.

Club statistics

Managerial statistics

• Statistics including J1 and J2 Leagues, J. League Cup and The Emperor's Cup results.

References

External links

* * 1972 births Living people Kokushikan University alumni Association football people from Saitama Prefecture Japanese footballers J1 League players J2 League players Japan Football League (1992–1998) players Kawasaki Frontale players Omiya Ardija players Sagan Tosu players Tokushima Vortis players Japanese football managers J1 League managers J2 League managers Omiya Ardija managers Ventforet Kofu managers Júbilo Iwata managers category:Vegalta Sendai managers Association football midfielders {{Japan-footy-midfielder-1970s-stub