Hyundai Steel women’s football team, the Red Angels, recruited veteran Japanese midfielder Yoko Tanaka during the summer transfer season as they aim for their 10th straight league title.
Hyundai Steel announced on August 1 that it had finalized a contract with Yoko Tanaka (29), who is joining the Red Angels from Rayo Vallecano, the Spanish women’s football league.
Born in Yamaguchi, Japan, Tanaka served as a key midfielder in the Kobe Ainak and Nojima Stella Kanagawa Japanese professional leagues. She moved to Spain in 2019, where she played for Sporting Club de Huelva before moving on to Rayo Vallecano.
Tanaka has been considered a leading player in Japanese women’s soccer ever since her debut, leading the Japanese national team to second place at the 2010 U-17 World Cup, first place at the 2011 AFC Championship, and third place at the 2012 U-20 World Cup. In her professional career, Tanaka has scored 54 goals in 139 games in Japan and 5 goals in 42 games in the Spanish league (in the 2020-2021 season).
Tanaka, viewed as an all-around player, demonstrates a wide range of skills in the midfield position as well as on defense and is known for her precise techniques and powerful, mid-range shot.
“We recruited a player with skills to reinforce our midfield. With her remarkable ability to execute offensive maneuvers and perform pass plays, she will be a huge asset to the team,” a club official said of Tanaka.