The Ishida Masatoshi Interview: Daejeon record scorer and cult hero
Since 2021, when Daejeon Hana Citizen signed Ishida Masatoshi initially on loan from Gangwon FC, the club's supporters have known that Autumn has officially arrived because that's when the Japanese genius really comes into form.
In that half-season in 2021, after scoring in what was his third appearance for Daejeon, "Masa," as he's registered in K League, because it's "easier," then went four games without a goal, but then, heading into mid-September, he scored seven in six matches. The following year, the season Daejeon finally escaped K League 2, autumn began with a flurry of goals for Masa - three in two matches after a barren spell through the summer; the pattern is similar this season, and was similar last season after he returned to the club following six months away.
The fans have given him the nickname 'Gaeul Masa,' or 'Autumn Masa,' a nickname that he says he likes and acknowledges why he has been bestowed with it. "Yeah, sure." He says with a wry smile during a Zoom interview with K League United, when asked about whether the nickname was to his liking, "But [since] I played in K League, autumn is always getting increased, like I score my points (goals and assists). So that's why the fans write like this, but I don't [mind]. That's good."
It's a nickname that will be used in the media, too, and was something he was asked again about following the brace against Pohang Steelers in Round 32, but even then he just said he didn't know why, and focused more on why his performance might not have been great the last time he visited the Steel Yard. He was referring to the season curtain-raiser - a 3-0 win and a game, it's worth pointing out that Masa registered an assist in. That's very typical of him, a compliment is usually side-stepped and looks for ways he should have done better.
Naturally, a player who is judged on goals and assists would prefer to be consistent all year round, but there is a palpable focus that can be seen in Masa when K League begins to get serious, when the weather cools, but points mean more.
Not much was known about Ishida Masatoshi when he first arrived in K League with Ansan Greeners, a move that would change his life, given the trajectory of his career since. The move, he says, almost came out of nowhere.
" At the time, maybe just three clubs, a couple of teams I can go to. But I was young and [had] nothing [of a] career, but my agent connect with a Korean agent. So, yeah, luckily, I can join this club. This was so lucky, actually, for me."
With nine goals and one assist, he helped the Green Wolves have their best-ever season, coming close to reaching the playoffs.
Masa is very self-critical, and even when he's scored and has played well, he will seem to find faults in his game. When asked about this, he says this is "his style," and that he is like that to keep performance levels high, "I try to [keep a] high, high level every single ability, so that's why I'm always strict [with] myself and I try to always reflect on myself."
Even in the 3-1 Round 32 win over Pohang Steelers on October 5th, a game that saw Masa score two very good goals, he admitted in the post-match press conference that he wasn't totally happy with his performance, "Personally, my performance wasn't good. I will need to watch the video back. In the second half, we pressed the opposition from a bit higher up. I am relieved that I scored two and the team won."
He does a lot of that, watching videos back and mentions it a lot. There's a lot of self-review and analysis in order to get the best out of himself. But what needs to happen in a game for him to be satisfied with his performance? "It depends," was the short answer. "I always aim to (get) point, to assist or score. My most strong point, strength is turn between the lines, always take the ball between gap, and I always turn smoothly. So this is my style; also second ball react are also my strengths. So actually there are so many tasks for my ideal soccer. But, of course, you know, perfectness is not good for mentality. So that's why I try to avoid to perfect; it's a balance."
But, there's a sense of the tormented genius about Masa. Like artists, musicians, and creative types who suffer for their craft. His art is enjoyed by the Purple Area faithful, that is for certain, and while Masa may say he tries to avoid perfectionism, he still doesn't seem satisfied with his performances, regardless of what happens in the game.
One word that you could use instead is professionalism. Always striving to maintain high levels of performance is what has enabled Masa to become a top K League 1 player, from someone unknown outside the lower leagues in Japan.
Since joining Daejeon, Masa has been deployed in a number of different roles. His varied skillset means he can play as a central midfielder, a second striker, as a false nine, or an out-and-out striker. He names Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldinho, Lionel Messi, and Cristiano Ronaldo as his childhood footballing heroes, which, to some degree, particularly with Messrs Zidane and Messi as his inspiration, may explain why he says he prefers to be deployed as a 10 and likes to be the one behind the striker in a 4-1-4-1.
But even with the "many tasks," as he put it, not just scoring, there's a certain pressure that comes with setting standards so high. But he says that he has changed his mentality to focus more on his all-around game, not just scoring goals or setting up teammates.
"So, let's say recently I changed my mind. I said I'm aiming to score, assist, but I always focusing to my job, not only in the box, I especially my role is always take the ball between the gap and always turn. This is my biggest job and second ball situations also try to win. This is my thought in my head. So that's why I don't think much, you know, pressure towards scoring points recently."
After initially signing on loan in the summer of 2021, making 17 appearances, scoring nine, and assisting two, his deal was made permanent in 2022. He helped guide Daejeon back to K League 1, registering 10 goals and five assists in 33 appearances, then helped the Purples stay in K League 1 in 2023, adding six goals and three assists in 25 appearances.
But at 29, and with his contract running out, Masa sought pastures new when an offer from Greece came in PAS Giannina, a side that was sitting bottom of the Greek Super League at the time, but offered a once-in-a-lifetime chance of playing in Europe. It was a move that was "99%" done, so for it to see it fall through would have been a big disappointment.
Manager at the time, Thanasis Staikos, lost his job, which meant Masa having to look elsewhere. That elsewhere became J1 League side Jubilo Iwata; although Masa would lose out on his chance to test himself in Europe, it would at least give him the chance to have a go at top-division Japanese football - something he had never done before.
It turns out that the move to Greece could have gone through after the new manager was appointed, but at this stage, around a week later, Masa had already verbally agreed to sign for Jubilo.
" I wanted to first try Europe, Greece on a six-month contract. I was aiming to like a step, after six months - a super tough challenge, I was clear (about that), but Jubilo Iwata is also a good team I was able to contract with."
Knee and ankle injuries meant the time back in his homeland never got going, featuring just three times and starting just once in J1. The lack of game time gave Daejeon fans and management alike hope of a return. The club had kept in contact with him throughout, not wanting to let him go in the first place, so was constantly asked the question. The Japanese interpreter was kept on and given a new role within the backroom staff. It can't be said for certain that Daejeon were expecting his return, but everything was in place in case he did. Masa rebuffed all approaches initially, but eventually gave in.
"Yeah, actually definitely a turning point in my life," he says when talking about his return to the club he "loves." So, yeah, first I rejected the offer couple of times actually. But Daejeon [were] enthusiastic,[when] talk to me, and also the head coach also [had an] enthusiastic offer.
"And at that time, my ankle was always not twisted but was having pain for three, four months. I played sometimes, I play, out, rest, come back, like this when I was in J.League six months. I think the Jubilo Iwata ground, I couldn't adjust [to the] turf, ground. So that's why I was super rushed and always rushing about my ankle and knee. So that's why I rejected about this offer."
But once Masa felt like he was ready, he finally accepted Daejeon's offer of a return. Daejeon knew the situation and accepted that it might take a bit of time to get up to speed. This was a huge show of confidence in a player the club rates very highly because, as Masa points out, Citizen were propping up the K League 1 table at the time. It almost felt like a duty of care on Masa's part to return and help steer the club away from relegation, to save his "favourite club."
"It was a good offer and Daejeon were very difficult season, almost bottom, so I couldn't reject, you know? That's why I finally decided to return here, but it was a super tough, tough decision."
It proved to be a master stroke to bring Masa back. Hwang Sun-hong had finally landed his man, having failed to bring him to the club in his first spell in charge in 2020. The two had even had dinner together, but the timing was off, and a move to Suwon FC from Ansan was sealed instead.
"2020, it didn't work because (Daejeon's) Asian quota, some other player contract with Daejeon so that's why I go to Suwon FC." In an interesting twist of fate, Daejeon began the Hana era with a win away to Suwon FC, and Masa started the game.
Clearly, Masa wanted to move to Purple Arena, even after the first failed attempt to lure him from the Wa~, "First, I love the stadium and the supporters [are\ in my good memory. The club's enthusiastic at that time."
Fast forward to the summer of 2024, Hwang Sun-hong can name Masa in a Daejeon team for the first time. He got an assist in his first game back with Daejeon in 2024, coming off the bench to help Citizen come back from 2-0 down to earn a last-gasp 2-2 draw at home to relegation rivals Jeonbuk in Round 21. In his first start since returning, he got a brace in a 2-1 away win over Suwon FC. Other important contributions include a goal and an assist in a 3-2 away win over FC Seoul, the game's only goal in a 1-0 win over Daegu FC, and the opener in the 2-1 win away to Incheon that sealed safety.
Just like he had done in 2021, Masa's mid-season arrival in 2025 spurred Daejeon on, and a return of six goals and three assists in 15 appearances shows how important he was to the club in avoiding relegation.
Generally, Masa's goal and assist return for Daejeon at K League 1 level is impressive for a player who seldom plays as an out-and-out striker; 55 appearances, 15 goals, and nine assists, making it a goal contribution every 2.3 games. So it's a bit of a mystery why it didn't work out for the Japanese at Gangwon in 2022.
Masa says he was "kicked out" and "almost fired" from Gangwon, where he made just nine appearances and didn't register a single goal or assist. He attributes this to an injury picked up early on, but is his usual self-critical self in assessing what went wrong.
" I couldn't [get] results, score. Of course, I got an injury in [my] first game (5-0 away loss to Ulsan) - unlucky but totally, looking back, so I don't have enough to get results in the first division."
Luckily, Daejeon maintained their interest from a year earlier. "Daejeon offered for me (to leave Gangwon). Actually, Daejeon always contacted me in the 2020 season, but we couldn't do a contract, but finally I can join this club."
It was a poor season for Gangwon in general, finishing 11th in K League 1 to go through the relegation playoffs. In another interesting twist of fate, Gangwon faced Daejeon in the playoffs. Despite being on loan from the Bears, he was able to play against his parent club. The first leg saw him lay on an assist for Lee Hyun-sik, another former Gangwon player, to earn a 1-0 aggregate lead to take to Gangneung for the fate-deciding second leg. Daejeon fans won't need reminding of what happened on the East Coast, nor will Masa.
But to sum up what happened, Daejeon went 1-0 up in the second leg, 2-0 on aggregate, but then a mad five minutes towards the end of the first half saw the Purples concede three to turn the tie completely on its head. A fourth goal was added in second-half stoppage time. Gangwon survived, Daejeon remained in K League 2.
It was a traumatic experience for anyone connected with the club. " Actually, I couldn't mentally recover in the couple of months (after), but I had no choice but to do the next year, 2022. But, yeah, I don't want to remind back this game, this was so tough in the off-season, I didn't smile much."
The following season saw Daejeon finish second and face Gimcheon Sangmu in the playoffs, sealing a 6-1 aggregate win. Masa laid on an assist in the first leg this time, too, teeing up Ju Se-jong to make it 2-1.
Although he was an unused substitute for the second leg, Masa played an important role in not only sending Daejeon back to K League 1 but also keeping them there, scoring important goals - ones that made the difference in turning defeats into draws or draws into wins.
Masa says it was "super good" to have played a key role in guiding the club back to the promised land, and that he and the team didn't want to make the same mistakes a second year in a row, but also that if the 2022 season proved to be a failure, he felt he should leave the club.
Being a fan favourite is something he "appreciates." "We actually different nationalities, different backgrounds, but so many supporters love me, and also, I love the fans all the time."
Something that really endeared Masa to the Daejeon supporters early on was his enthusiasm to speak in Korean and even do interviews in Korean. There was a big reaction to one particular interview that he did, to the point where one supporter even got the words tattooed on his arm.
After scoring a hat-trick in a 4-1 home win over Ansan Greeners on 10th October 2021, Masa did a live TV interview pitch side after the game and, in Korean, said: "Me, personally, up until now I have been a failure in my football life. Nevertheless, there are games like this where you can change your life. Anyhow, let's put our lives on the line for promotion (to K League 1)."
The "let's put our lives on the line" part in particular made him a cult hero. He says that he was surprised by the reaction, though, and "couldn't have imagined" it.
The timing of his arrival at Daejeon was key, too. The Purples hadn't started too brightly, but were struggling for consistency. They also lacked a reliable goal scorer, and Masa became the club's top scorer in half a season with nine.
But it wasn't just his qualities as a footballer that helped galvanise the team; his personality also helped. When asked about this, Masa admits that he felt it too, " Yeah, I felt it," he says when asked if he felt the squad coming closer together, "...towards [the goal of] promote. After that, you know, couple of games our performance was super good. But, finally, this is football, you know, just four minutes, lose the three goals. But, yeah, at that time, I felt it, that it was good (among the players)."
Just as fans know it's autumn when Masa starts scoring, Daejeon fans seem to know that it's Chuseok because Masa has scored in the game just before Chuseok, Korean Thanksgiving, in each of the last three years, all away from home too. This season, it gives Daejeon fans the confidence and belief now that, with Masa in form, Daejeon's spring is coming and the team can secure AFC Champions League qualification.
"In the moment, the big target is Asia Champions League, also second place, in terms of this year. So this is a big, obvious target. Personally, as I said, focusing on my role - take the ball and [move] ahead, always turn, pass into the box and score, also fight [for] second ball always. This is my focusing in the moment."
Where to Listen
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