Issey Morgan Nakajima-Farran (born 16 May 1984) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

professional

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

player who plays for

UE Tàrrega Unió Esportiva Tàrrega is a Spanish football team based in Tàrrega, in the autonomous community of Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated ...

in the

Primera Catalana The Primera Catalana is the 6th tier of the Spanish football league system and the highest league in the autonomous community of Catalonia. The league was formed in 1991 to replace Regional Preferent as the first level of Catalonia and was split i ...

Club career

Youth

Born to a

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

mother and an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

an father, Nakajima-Farran moved with his family from Canada to

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

when he was three. His football career began while playing for the junior youth team of

Verdy Kawasaki is a Japanese professional football club based in Inagi, Tokyo. The club plays in the J2 League, the second tier of football in the country. Founded as Yomiuri F.C. in 1969, Tokyo Verdy is one of the most decorated clubs in the J.League, with ...

. He later moved to England at the age of ten to play for

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building * ...

's youth team but returned to Japan when he was 16 to pursue a youth contract with

Tokyo Verdy is a Japanese professional football club based in Inagi, Tokyo. The club plays in the J2 League, the second tier of football in the country. Founded as Yomiuri F.C. in 1969, Tokyo Verdy is one of the most decorated clubs in the J.League, with ...

. In 2003, he began his professional football career after having signed with

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 ...

Albirex Niigata is a professional football club based in Niigata, Japan. Formed in 1955 as Niigata Eleven SC, it was renamed Albireo Niigata FC in 1995, and Albirex Niigata in 1997. From 2023, Albirex will be playing on the J1 League, coming back to the fir ...

Albirex Niigata (S)

In 2004, Nakajima-Farran was transferred to the Albirex Niigata's Singaporean satellite club in the

S.League The Singapore Premier League, commonly abbreviated as SPL, officially known as the AIA Singapore Premier League for sponsorship reasons, is a men's professional football league sanctioned by the Football Association of Singapore (FAS), which r ...

. Upon two successful seasons with

Albirex Niigata Singapore FC Albirex Niigata Singapore FC, abbreviated as Albirex Niigata (S), is a Singaporean football club that plays in the Singapore Premier League. The club is a satellite team of Albirex Niigata of Japan. History Albirex Niigata Singapore, a satellite ...

, scoring 26 goals in 45 appearances, he was awarded the S.League Young Player of the Year in 2005, and also was invited to play a game for the U-21 side of

Singapore national under-21 football team The Singapore national under-21 football team is an under-21 football team representing Singapore. History Fandi Ahmad Fandi bin Ahmad (born 29 May 1962) is a Singaporean professional football manager and former player. During his profess ...

Vejle

In the winter transfer window of 2006, Nakajima-Farran had trials with English sides

Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east ...

and

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

, however was signed by

Danish First Division The 1st Division (''1. Division'') is the second-highest football league in Denmark, also known as NordicBet Liga for sponsorship reasons. From 1945 to 1991 the 1. Division was the name of the highest level of football in Denmark. With the forma ...

team

Vejle Boldklub Vejle Boldklub is a Danish professional football club based in Vejle in Jutland. Formed in 1891, the club is one of the most successful clubs in Danish football history, having won the Danish championship five times and the Danish cup title six t ...

on a 2-year deal. He helped Vejle BK win the championship and gain promotion to the top league in the Danish football system, the Superliga, by netting 7 goals in 13 games.

Nordsjælland

Following a strong performance in his first season in the top flight, he was bought by Danish Superliga side,

FC Nordsjælland Football Club Nordsjælland, commonly known as FC Nordsjælland, Nordsjælland () or FCN, is a professional Danish football team from the North Zealand town of Farum. Founded as ''Farum Boldklub'' from the merger of the town's two football club ...

on a 4-year contract in June 2007. Upon his debut for his new club, he guided FCN to their first victory over Denmark's most successful club,

FC København Football Club Copenhagen ( da, Football Club København, ), commonly known as FC København, FC Copenhagen, Copenhagen or simply FCK, is a professional Danish football club in Copenhagen, Denmark. FCK was founded in 1992 as a superstructure on ...

by scoring the only goal of the game in injury time. He went on to score many important goals for FCN, as well as making appearances in the qualifying campaign and the first round of the

UEFA Cup 2008-09 Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs fo ...

. During the summer transfer window of 2009, Nakajima-Frarran went on a trial with

Eredivisie The Eredivisie (; ''"Honour Division"'' or ''"Premier Division"'') is the highest level of professional football in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is c ...

team

De Graafschap VBV De Graafschap () is a professional football club from Doetinchem, Netherlands, playing in the Eerste Divisie, the second tier of Dutch football. It was formed on 1 February 1954 and they play their home games at the De Vijverberg stadium. ...

, but joined Danish First Division side, AC Horsens on a 3-year deal. He helped Horsens win the championship and gain promotion to the Superliga for the 2010–11 season. In August 2011, Nakajima-Farran was released from AC Horsens after having mutually agreed with the team to terminate the remainder of the contract.

Brisbane Roar

On 30 August 2011, it was announced he had signed a one-year contract with

A-League A-League Men (known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons) is the highest-level professional men's soccer league in Australia and New Zealand. At the top of the Australian league system, it is the country's premier men's competiti ...

club

Brisbane Roar FC Brisbane Roar Football Club is an Australian professional association football, soccer club based in Brisbane, Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland and has won the domestic title on three occasions, as well as holding the longest unbeaten record ...

. Nakajima-Farran made his debut for the Roar on 11 September 2011 in a pre-season friendly at Launceston. He scored his first goal and set up another for Brisbane in a 7–1 thrashing of

Adelaide United FC Adelaide United Football Club is a professional soccer club based in Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. The club participates in the A-League Men under licence from Australian Professional Leagues (APL). The club was founded in 2003 to f ...

in round 4. In round 8, Issey was awarded "Man of the Match" after netting two goals in a 4–0 victory over

Perth Glory FC Perth Glory Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Perth, Western Australia. It competes in the country's premier men's competition, A-League Men, under licence from Australian Professional Leagues. Founded in 199 ...

, and helping the Roar set a new Australian sports team record of 36 unbeaten games.

AEK Larnaca

During the summer transfer window of 2012, Nakajima-Farran signed a two-year deal with Cypriot First Division side,

AEK Larnaca FC AEK Larnaca FC ( el, AEK; for short Αθλητική Έvωση Κίτιον Λάρνακας , translit=''Athletiki Enosi Kition Larnakas'', "Athletic Union Kition of Larnaca") is a Cypriot professional football club based in Larnaca. The club ...

. Issey netted his first goal in the Cypriot league on 22 October in a 3–0 routing of

Ayia Napa FC Athlitikos Omilos Ayia Napa ( el, Αθλητικός Όμιλος Αγία Νάπα, Athletic Club Ayia Napa) is a Cypriot football club from the town of Ayia Napa. The club was founded in 1990 after the merger of two clubs: APEAN (''Athlitiki Po ...

. In January 2013, Issey was loaned out to

Alki Larnaca FC Alki Larnaca ( el, ΑΛΚΗ Λάρνακας, ''ALKI Larnakas'') was a Cypriot football club based in the town of Larnaca. The club was founded in 1948 and it was dissolved on the 6th of May of 2014 due to financial issues. The club's colours wer ...

until the end of the 2012–13 season. During Round 26, Nakajima-Farran helped Alki Larnaca squeeze past

Ethnikos Achna FC Ethnikos Achna Football Club ( el, Αθλητικός Σύλλογος Εθνικός Άχνας), commonly known as Ethnikos Achna, or simply Ethnikos, is a Cypriot football club based in the village of Achna. Founded in 1968, the club currentl ...

6–5, by scoring a goal in the 54th minute, and setting up another two minutes later.

Toronto FC

On 24 January 2014, Nakajima-Farran began a trial with Canadian club

Toronto FC Toronto Football Club (commonly known as Toronto FC or TFC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matches at BMO ...

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

. On 28 March 2014, Farran signed a deal with Toronto after several weeks of speculation. The following day he made his debut as a second half sub for

Bradley Orr Bradley James Orr (born 1 November 1982) is an English retired footballer. Career Newcastle United & loans Born in Liverpool, Merseyside, Bradley Orr started his senior career with Newcastle United, and was loaned out to Burnley due to lack o ...

in a 3–0 away defeat to

Real Salt Lake Real Salt Lake, often shortened to RSL, is an American professional soccer franchise based in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. The club competes as a member club of Major League Soccer (MLS) in the Western Conference. RSL began play in 20 ...

. He scored his first goal for Toronto the following week on 5 April against the

Columbus Crew The Columbus Crew, formerly known as Columbus Crew SC, is an American professional soccer club based in Columbus, Ohio. The Crew competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference and began play in 1996 as one ...

, the game ended in a 2–0 away victory.

Montreal Impact

On 16 May 2014, Nakajima-Farran was traded to the Montreal Impact for

Collen Warner Collen Warner (born June 24, 1988) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder. He last played for Major League Soccer club Colorado Rapids. College and amateur Warner attended Denver East High School, played club socc ...

, the trade also included some allocation money. At the end of the season, he was waived by Montreal.

Suburense

Following his release from MLS, Nakajima-Farran trained and played with amateur CF Suburense in the

Segona Catalana The Segona Catalana is the seventh tier of the Spanish football league system and the second highest league in the autonomous community of Catalonia. The league was formed in 2011 to replace Territorial Preferent as second level of Catalonia and ...

, the sixth tier of the

Spanish football league system The Spanish football league system consists of several professional, semi-professional and non-professional leagues bound together hierarchically by promotion and relegation. The top two tiers of the male league pyramid—La Liga, Primera División ...

to stay fit and be close to his family.

Terengganu

Nakajima-Farran signed with

Malaysia Super League The Malaysia Super League ( ms, Liga Super Malaysia) is the men's top professional football division of the Malaysian football league system. Administered by the Football Malaysia Limited Liability Partnership (FMLLP), now known as the Malays ...

club

Terengganu Terengganu (; Terengganu Malay: ''Tranung'', Jawi: ), formerly spelled Trengganu or Tringganu, is a sultanate and constitutive state of federal Malaysia. The state is also known by its Arabic honorific, ''Dāru l- Īmān'' ("Abode of Faith"). ...

on 1 April 2015. After a disastrous 2016 campaign which saw Terengganu relegated to the second tier, Issey chose to stay and help the team gain promotion. He proved his words by helping them to finish 2nd in the

Malaysia Premier League The Malaysia Premier League ( ms, Liga Premier) was the second-tier professional Association football, football league in Malaysia. The league replaced the former second-tier league, Liga Perdana 2 in the Malaysian football league system. The ...

, ensuring their return to the

Super League The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of wh ...

. On 1 November 2017, Nakajima-Farran announced that he had departed the club by mutual consent.

Pahang

Nakajima-Farran joined

Pahang Pahang (;Jawi alphabet, Jawi: , Pahang Hulu Malay: ''Paha'', Pahang Hilir Malay: ''Pahaeng'', Ulu Tembeling Malay: ''Pahaq)'' officially Pahang Darul Makmur with the Arabic honorific ''Darul Makmur'' (Jawi: , "The Abode of Tranquility") is a ...

in April 2018.

Pacific FC

Nakajima-Farran signed with

Canadian Premier League The Canadian Premier League (CPL or CanPL; french: Première ligue canadienne, links=no) is a professional men's Association football, soccer league in Canada. At the top of the Canadian soccer league system, it is the country's primary nationa ...

club

Pacific FC Pacific Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Greater Victoria, British Columbia. The club competes in the Canadian Premier League, playing home matches at Starlight Stadium located in Langford. History On May 5, 201 ...

ahead of their inaugural season on March 5, 2019. He scored his first goal for Pacific on July 1, off a free-kick against

Cavalry FC Cavalry Football Club, is a Canadian professional soccer club based in the Calgary metropolitan region of Alberta. The club competes at the top of the Canadian soccer league system in the Canadian Premier League, and plays their home matches at ...

CCB LFC United

Vancouver Metro Soccer League The Vancouver Metro Soccer League (VMSL) is a soccer men's league operating in British Columbia, Canada primarily in the Lower Mainland area. History The league is an amateur league, and does not compete against or promote teams to the Canadian ...

club CCB LFC United announced they had signed Nakajima-Farran on January 18, 2020.

UE Tàrrega

In March 2021, he signed in the Spanish fifth tier with

International career

He made his debut for

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

in November 2006 for friendly match against

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

. As of November 2013, he has earned a total of 30 caps, scoring 1 goal, represented Canada during the 2007, 2009, 2011 and 2013 editions of the

CONCACAF Gold Cup The CONCACAF Gold Cup ( es, Copa de Oro de la CONCACAF, french: Coupe D'or CONCACAF) is the main association football competition of the men's national football teams governed by CONCACAF, determining the continental champion of North Ameri ...

and also in four

2010 FIFA World Cup qualification Qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA confederations. Each confederation — the AFC (Asia), CAF (Africa), CONCACAF (North, Central America and Caribbean), CONMEBOL (South America), OFC (O ...

matches.

Career statistics

Club

:A. Includes appearances in the

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...

and

CONCACAF Champions League The CONCACAF Champions League, known officially as the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League for sponsorship reasons, is an annual continental club football competition organized by CONCACAF. The tournament is contested by clubs from North Ameri ...

International

International goals

, - , 1. , , 20 June 2008 , ,

Arnos Vale Stadium The Arnos Vale Stadium is a cricket ground in Arnos Vale, near Kingstown, St. Vincent. The multi-use ground – part of Arnos Vale Sports Complex – is situated next to and to the west of the Arnos Vale Playing Field. The stadium holds the capa ...

Kingstown Kingstown is the capital, chief port, and main commercial centre of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. With a population of 12,909 (2012), Kingstown is the most populous settlement in the country. It is the island's agricultural industry centre ...

, St. Vincent & the Grenadines , , , , 0–1 , , 0–3 , ,

Personal life

Nakajima-Farran is Japan passport holder. His parents were born in two other countries, as his father is from

(of

English descent The English people are an ethnic group and nation native to England, who speak the English language, a West Germanic language, and share a common history and culture. The English identity is of Anglo-Saxon origin, when they were known in ...

) and his mother is from

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. His brother

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, was also a professional footballer who represented Canada at U-20 level and played as a defender for clubs in Japan, Denmark, Hong Kong and Spain. Other than playing football, Nakajima-Farran is an artist.

Honours

Albirex Niigata *

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

Vejle Boldklub * Danish First Division: 2005–06 AC Horsens * Danish First Division: 2009–10 Brisbane Roar * A-League: 2011–12 Montreal Impact * Canadian Championship:

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

Individual * Singapore Young Player of the Year: 2005 *

PFAM Player of the Month The PFAM Player of the Month is an association football award that recognises the best Malaysian League player each month of the season. The player nominated in the month will be selected by a panel comprising representatives from PFAM, asiana.m ...

: August 2015, October 2015

References

External links

* * *
Official website
*
Issey Nakajima-Farran Interview

Who is: Issey Nakajima-Farran
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nakajima-Farran, Issey 1984 births Living people Association football forwards Canadian soccer players Canada men's international soccer players Singaporean footballers Soccer players from Calgary Association football people from Tokyo People educated at Yokohama International School Canadian people of English descent Canadian sportspeople of Japanese descent Canadian people of Zimbabwean descent Singaporean people of Japanese descent Singaporean people of English descent Singaporean people of Zimbabwean descent Canadian expatriate soccer players Singaporean expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Denmark Canadian expatriate sportspeople in Denmark Expatriate soccer players in Australia Canadian expatriate sportspeople in Australia Expatriate footballers in Cyprus Canadian expatriate sportspeople in Cyprus Expatriate footballers in Spain Canadian expatriate sportspeople in Spain Albirex Niigata players Albirex Niigata Singapore FC players Vejle Boldklub players FC Nordsjælland players AC Horsens players Brisbane Roar FC players AEK Larnaca FC players Alki Larnaca FC players Toronto FC players CF Montréal players Terengganu FC players Sri Pahang FC players Pacific FC players J2 League players Singapore Premier League players Danish Superliga players A-League Men players Cypriot First Division players Major League Soccer players Divisiones Regionales de Fútbol players Malaysia Super League players Canadian Premier League players 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup players 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup players 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup players 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup players