After eleven minutes of the Eredivisie, it is already over for Naoki Maeda, who has been rented by FC Utrecht from Nagoya Grampus. The Japanese quickly dropped out on Sunday during his Eredivisie debut after a hard, but fair tackle from Ajax player Lisandro Martínez. Maeda has broken his lower leg and needs surgery.
It was a sad picture as Naoki Maeda hopped off the field in tears and was eventually carried into the catacombs by the club medics. His Eredivisie debut, in the hopeless lost top match against Ajax (0-3), lasted exactly eleven minutes. He then went straight to the hospital. There was a fracture in his lower leg, which requires surgery.
With that, Maeda’s season has come to an end, while the 27-year-old Japanese was rented from Nagoya Grampus until the end of the season. There is an option to buy, which – if it is lifted – will ensure that Maeda is fixed in the Domstad until the summer of 2025. But the question now is whether it makes sense for Utrecht to explore that option. Maeda realizes that too. “I have months of rehabilitation ahead of me. That means that my first match for FC Utrecht was also my last,” he says on the FC Utrecht club website.
A month-long rehabilitation awaits me. That means that my first match for FC Utrecht was also my last
Trainer René Hake thought the Japanese left a good impression, called him eager to learn and immediately pitted him against Ajax. Hake will be extra disappointed, because he wanted to add depth to his selection with Maeda. Especially in the absence of Moussa Sylla. That is why it cannot be ruled out that Utrecht will still stir in the transfer market due to Maeda’s injury.
Due to his injury, Maeda’s debut became the shortest appearance ever by a Utrecht player who was allowed to start in the starting lineup on his Eredivisie debut. He is officially the third Japanese player to have worn the Utrecht shirt, after Toshiya Fujita (fourteen matches in 2003-2004) and Yoshiaki ‘Sjakie’ Takagi (33 matches between 2011 and 2013). Of all the players who came into action for FC Utrecht, Maeda is not the one with the fewest minutes for the Domstedelingen. Davy van den Berg and Eros Maddy played four and five minutes respectively this season.
,,It was my big dream to play football in Europe and that dream has become reality because of the chance that FC Utrecht has offered me,’ said Maeda. ,,My dream is shattered for now, but I’m not giving up on my dream. I will discuss my treatment process with Nagoya Grampus and FC Utrecht and I will now fully focus on my recovery.”
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