is a former

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 ...

ese

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 currently the manager of

Oita Trinita is a Japanese football club currently playing in J2 League, having been relegated after the 2021 season after a three-year stint in J1 League. The club's home town is Ōita, Ōita, Ōita city, but the club draws support from Beppu, Ōita, Beppu, ...

Playing career

Shimotaira was born in

Gonohe, Aomori is a town located in Aomori Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 16,880, and a population density of 95 persons per km2 in 7,006 households. The total area of the town is . Geography Gonohe is located in the north-easte ...

on December 18, 1971. After graduating from high school, he joined

Japan Soccer League , or JSL, was the top flight association football league in Japan between 1965 and 1992, and was the precursor to the current professional league, the J.League. JSL was the second national league of a team sport in Japan after the professional ...

club

Hitachi () is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate corporation headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It is the parent company of the Hitachi Group (''Hitachi Gurūpu'') and had formed part of the Ni ...

(later ''Kashiwa Reysol'') in 1990. He became a regular player as defensive midfielder from 1991. In 1992, Japan Soccer League was folded and the club joined new league

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 ...

. In 1995, the club 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 ...

. In 1999, the club won the champions

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 ...

. Although he played as regular player for a long time, he moved to

FC Tokyo Football Club Tokyo, commonly known as , is a Japanese professional football club based in Chōfu, Tokyo. The club plays in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country. The team is one of only four in the J.League to be si ...

in 2001. Although he could not become a regular player behind Satoru Asari and

Fumitake Miura is a former Japanese football player and manager and currently first-team coach of J2 League club Júbilo Iwata for 2023. Playing career Miura was born in Shizuoka on August 12, 1970. After graduating from University of Tsukuba, he joined Yokoh ...

in 2001, he played as regular player instead Asari and Miura in 2002 because they were injured. In 2003, he returned to Kashiwa Reysol. He retired end of 2004 season.

Coaching career

After retirement, Shimotaira started coaching career at

Kashiwa Reysol is a Japanese professional football club based in Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture, part of the Greater Tokyo Area. The club plays in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country. Their home stadium is Sankyo Frontier Kashiwa Stadiu ...

in 2005. He mainly served as scout and manager for youth team until 2015. In 2016, he became a manager for top team under manager

Milton Mendes Milton Mendes (born 25 April 1965) is a Brazilian football coach and a former player who played mainly as a right back. He is the manager of Retrô. He spent the better part of his 18-year professional career in Portugal, representing nine and ...

. In March 2016, Mendes was sacked and Shimotaira became a new manager as Mendes successor. Although the club finished at 8th place in 2016, the club won the 4th place in 2017 and won the qualify for

2018 AFC Champions League The 2018 AFC Champions League was the 37th edition of Asia's premier club football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the 16th under the current AFC Champions League title. Kashima Antlers won the title for the f ...

. However the club results were bad in 2018 and he was sacked in May when the club was at the 14th place of 18 clubs. In 2019, Shimotaira 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 ...

club,

Yokohama FC is a Japanese professional football club based in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, part of the Greater Tokyo Area. The club currently plays in the J1 League, which is the first tier of football in the country. The club was formed by fans of Yokoh ...

and became a coach under manager

Edson Tavares Edson Araujo Tavares (born 10 June 1956 in Rio de Janeiro) is a Brazilian 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 mea ...

. In May, Tavares was sacked and Shimotaira became a new manager. In 1 February 2022, Shimotaira signed with

relegated club,

and became a manager. The final position 5th advance to promotion playoff J1 League. They draw 2-2 with Roasso Kumamoto in away game and missed J1 League return in one year.

Club statistics

Managerial statistics

Update; ''end of 2022 season''.J.League Data Site
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References

External links

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Takahiro Shimotaira
at Footballdatabase 1971 births Living people Association football people from Aomori Prefecture Japanese footballers Japan Soccer League players J1 League players Japan Football League (1992–1998) players Kashiwa Reysol players FC Tokyo players Japanese football managers J1 League managers J2 League managers Kashiwa Reysol managers Yokohama FC managers category:Oita Trinita managers Association football midfielders {{Japan-footy-midfielder-1970s-stub