BIO
Date of Birth / Age: 07/09/01 / 22yo
Nationality: Japan
Team: Kashiwa Reysol
Position: ST or Second ST
Height: 5'9"
General stats for the 2023 season via transfermarkt.co.uk
Positional heatmap for the 2023 season via sofascore.com
A Kashiwa Reysol lifer, Mao Hosoya has rapidly climbed up every rung in the ladder, cementing himself as the J League outfit's star player at the start of the 2023 season aged only 21 and even earning a call-up to Japan's national team for the 2024 Asian Cup, supplanting the consistently productive Kyogo Furuhashi. Despite Kashiwa struggling down by the relegation zone throughout the season, Hosoya was able to prove himself as a trusted goalscorer in the Japanese top flight netting 14 times, a number only bested by 4 others.
PHYSICAL TRAITS
Electric speed and acceleration, naturally athletic
Hosoya is clearly physically gifted with regard to his running ability and can accelerate to his top speed in a hurry.
Despite his shorter stature, he can really stride out and compete with more advantaged men over longer distances. Combine this with his acceleration ability and Hosoya becomes a real threat as a runner.
I do not know if he has a background in track sports though it certainly seems as if that is the case - technically he is refined, always staying centred and balanced.
In most cases Hosoya will be the fastest man on the pitch, something that will translate to all levels of the sport as the J League contains an array of athletically gifted footballers.
Deceptively strong for his size/frame
Hosoya does have some stockiness to his build, particularly in his legs and hips, but not so much that you would view him as being physically strong. His frame, also, does not convey this.
Despite this, he competes should-to-shoulder with far bigger men on a regular basis and not once did I observe him to be convincingly out-muscled.
Being shorter he does have the leverage advantage in engagements, letting him get under the opposition player and move them off their base, something he does frequently.
His contact balance is a big plus, something that most likely originates from his stocky lower half. When carrying through a tackle or running alongside a defender trying to impose themselves on him, Hosoya maintains his posture and stride, allowing him to be relatively unaffected by the physical battle.
All these factors are compounded by an overall positive mentality towards duels, he will never shy away and happily engages in contact.
Impressive aerobic capacity, able to work hard throughout the 90
Hosoya's workrate is admirable, he tirelessly makes runs over the course of the game even when he is not being found by his teammates.
Eqaully, Hosoya will always track back and/or press if needed, working hard to support the team in the defensive phase.
Very few players commit more sprints per 90 than him. The stamina is very impressive, he is not just racking up kilometers ran by simply drifting around the pitch, he is running hard.
Again, this stamina is compounded by his mentality towards working hard off the ball. Selfless.
ON-BALL ACTIONS
A true poacher, efficient with his shot selection
0.5 goals per 90 for a relegation-level side is not to be sniffed at, that is very impressive production, especially for a 21/22 year old.
2.4 shots per 90 is not particularly high volume, definitely less than you'd expect for someone scoring at the rate Hosoya is. He gets very few chances a game and he ensures that he makes the most of them through careful shot selection.
Hosoya does have the confidence and bravado in-and-around the box that you'd desire from your star striker, do not let the shot selection fool you. There are situations where he will fire at goal from distance simply because he's feeling confident, perhaps this would happen more often if he were playing in a side that consistently had the ball in the opposition half instead of Kashiwa.
Because of how effective he already is at carving out and converting high quality chances, there is reason to believe that his production will skyrocket should he move to a more creative side - he does, at this moment in time, rely on good service into the box, something that only really Matheus Savio can provide at Kashiwa.
Clear angle bias when shooting from the left-hand side
The only real issue that can be found with Hosoya's actions inside the opposition box is his angle bias - if the ball is passed to him when he's on the left-hand side of the box he exclusively wants to curl it into the far corner with his instep, refusing to go onto his weaker left foot.
This leads to awkward situations where he tries to force his way through a closed angle while plenty of space is left towards the touchline. Defenders are aware that he doesn't want to strike with his left .
Hosoya is not particularly weak shooting on his left, however, which leads to this angle bias being rather confusing. There are plenty of examples of him catching the ball sweetly with his weak foot from other areas of the pitch, especially in scrappier situations where he has less time to think about his shot, instead acting on instinct.
Perhaps this angle bias is due to a mental block of some kind, something I am not nearly qualified enough to speculate on.
Lacks the ball manipulation and acute control to be truly effective with the ball at his feet
Outside of running in behind the defence, Hosoya is uncomfortable carrying the ball and struggles to beat his man often.
His touches tend to escape him because of subpar ball manipulation, making it seem like he's chasing his own touches at times. Wriggling out of tight spaces becomes difficult because of this, even in situations where he has the correct idea.
The only way he can consistently escape tight spaces is by drawing fouls. Hosoya is not scared of contact and will often initiate the contact in order to create some separation and force the defender into bringing him down. His pace also seems to goad players into diving in at his feet.
When running out into space this becomes less of an issue as there is more room for error, often how fast you're moving with the ball becomes more important and Hosoya most definitely moves fast.
Not heavily involved in possession phases but often has the right ideas when dropping off the last line to link play
When dropping deeper, Hosoya has a good understanding of what's behind him and where the space will be, allowing him to play first time flick-ons.
Because of the threat his athletic ability poses, defenders want to follow him when he drops so that they can get physical with him and stop him from escaping into space, opening up gaps behind them that are then exploited by these flick-ons in theory.
Playing first time also minimises the chance of poor touches, something we know Hosoya is prone to.
These first time passes are not always accurate, as you would expect given the difficulty of them, and this can lead to situations where it seems as if Hosoya has rushed the pass. In reality, his ideas are usually justified.
This is something you can see becoming a large part of his game once he is able to hit these passes more consistently, this level of vision and speed of action is not easy to teach and that makes it a fairly rare trait for strikers.
Lacks field vision and incisive passing when receiving in pockets facing the goal
Somehow, when Hosoya has the ball at his feet and is facing the defence/goal he loses the vision he has when facing the opposite direction. Maybe this is due to him overthinking, something you can't do playing a first time pass around the corner.
There is noticeable uncertainty in his body language in these situations, you can see the gears turning as he tries to unlock the defensive shape, he is not acting freely.
Naturally, Hosoya wants to be ahead of the ball, either making runs or sitting between the CBs in the box. He wants to finish the moves, not start them.
Often he just flat out misses runs, or he sees them too late, leading to complete breakdown in the attacks.
OFF-BALL ACTIONS
Exceptional movement off the ball, constantly threatening with runs
Hosoya is nearly constantly making runs when Kashiwa are in possession - between the CBs, across the face of the CBs, down the channel - he does it all. For me, this is the best part of his game by far.
He is a nightmare to mark because of the volume and variety of runs that he makes. Going man-to-man will just drag the defender around and create massive gaps for others to exploit, and you also run the risk of the man you elect to follow him everywhere simply being outmatched athletically.
Once he does get in behind he will not be caught, forcing teams to player a deeper line when they play Kashiwa or run the risk of being of being ripped apart defensively a la Consadole Sapporo, who conceded 6 goals in their 2 league games vs Hosoya.
The timing of the runs he makes are also spot on, he is seldom offside.
Often times the Kashiwa players will just launch the ball down the channel, expecting Hosoya to be in the right place to reach it, which he often is. Despite not having the frame you'd expect of a target man he can operate as one quite easily - teams fear being exploited in behind and are often late to follow him when he drops shorter to receive to his feet. Just an overall handful.
Box movement is equally impressive, specialises in 'in-and-out' movement
The in-and-out run is just a simple double move, starting the run to the near post for example, only to burst towards the far post once you see that the defender has committed to your first movement. Because of his change of direction ability, Hosoya does this as well as anybody.
Most defenders simply do not have the capacity to keep up with his movements, allowing him to toy with them.
Very few strikers can create the amount of space that Hosoya does in the box. This fuels his poacher playstyle and, for me, is an indicator of long term success - even when his legs have gone he will still be able to score at a consistent rate on the back off his box movement.
Follows his and his teammates shots in, something I enjoyed a lot. Fundamentally sound.
Effective presser, bolstered by his athleticism
Selflessly and tirelessly hounds down opposition players. Sometimes these actions are out of structure and no one else is pressing with him which should be reigned in, but the workrate and desire is admirable.
Not just brainlessly chasing the ball like a dog, too. Hosoya will correctly block passing lanes, showing clear understanding of the oppositions build-up patterns and how to nullify them.
Players on the ball often seem surprised by how quickly he closes them down, it's as if he simply appears beside them in an instant.
Has the right mentality, stamina, and vigour to lead the line effectively out of possession. His actions in the press inspire his teammates to join him with the same energy and effort.
Always in-and-around loose balls
Hosoya has an innate ability to be in the right place and the right time, always at the scene of loose balls and poor opposition touches. Again, showing a clear understanding of the game.
This aids his ability in being an outlet for his team as he is effective in winning second balls, especially when paired with a proper target man like Jay-Roy Grot.
Kashiwa are a side that rely a lot on scrappier moments and transitions to succeed so Hosoya's ability to find the ball in the midst of chaos proved to be helpful.
Again, this just highlights his admirable workrate, as well as his alertness.
Tracks back often to help win possession, 'negative pressing'
It should be no surprise now that Hosoya is more than willing to track back deep into his own half to help his team, appearing behind unsuspecting opposition players in an attempt to win the ball.
When he does go in for a tackle in this situations they are often scrappy and reckless, but they work. His determination as well as his willingness to put his body on the line allows him to be more physical in the duel than you'd expect.
No matter how tired he is, Hosoya will always look to track back and help his team, never will he give minimal effort.
Given Hosoya is Kashiwa's best player this part of his game impressed me greatly - he doesn't need to do this, he could easily get away with not doing it, and yet he does it anyway. Leading by example, fantastic character trait for a young player.
Ineffective aerially, seems half-hearted going up for duels
Only boasts a 36.6% aerial win rate, not great.
Leaps well as you'd expect from someone so athletic, but he almost never initiates contact with the opposition, a vital part of winning the duel by imposing yourself on the opposition.
He never goes up for a duel looking as if he could win it, he often looks half-hearted which is surprising.
In fairness, Hosoya does not have the build of someone you would expect to be strong in the air, nor does he have the correct mental profile - he wants to be chasing balls in space, not staying static so that he can have balls launched at his head.
This is an area that needs work so long as he's playing as a lone striker. If he's paired with a target man this becomes less of an issue.
WHAT'S NEXT?
Hosoya has proven himself to be ready for a step up to one of the top-8 European leagues, though that does not mean that needs to be the next step. If his loyalties to Kashiwa Reysol don't stand in the way, a move to one of the top Japanese clubs who need a truly prolific striker (Urawa Reds in particular) may be the best thing for Hosoya's career long term, allowing him to fine tune some of his technical flaws while competing with higher expectations, preparing him for life in Europe. Should he want to move to Europe, a move to Belgium or Germany seems most logical. Both nations often shop in Japan and the style of football played in their domestic leagues (high lines, high energy) suit Hosoya perfectly.