Parma, who won the last Serie B championship and were promoted to Serie A, he announced yesterday their new goalkeeper for the next championship: his name is Zion Suzuki, he is Japanese and he is 21 years old (he will be 22 in August). Suzuki has a very special history, because he was born in the United States of America to a Japanese mother and a Ghanaian father and – therefore – he can be considered a true citizen of the world. Also because he is from yet another country, this time Belgium, where he played last season with the shirt of Sint-Truiden, a team from the Flemish city of the same name.
Zion Suzuki is 190 centimeters tall and weighs 91 kilograms and as a child he moved with his family to Japan, where he also grew up sporting. Trained in the Urawa Reds youth team, he became the youngest player in the club’s history to sign a professional contract: he was 16 years and 5 months. In 2021 he made his debut in the local flight, at the age of 18, and together with Urawa Reds he also won the Asian Champions League in 2022. In 2021 he became the youngest player to be called up to the Japanese men’s national team for Tokyo. Olympic Games. According to Japanese mediain addition to his goalkeeping skills, he is also able to cover “extraordinary distances” by throwing the ball with his feet.
Welcome to Parma ๐ฏ๐ต๐๐ pic.twitter.com/tkGHnl3xqS
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Suzuki made his senior Japan team debut in 2022 and started at the last Asian Cup, where his country made it to the quarter-finals, losing 2-1 to Iran. Precisely in this game, as well as the opening victory of the group stage 4-2 against Vietnam, Parma’s new goalkeeper looked uncertain in some of the opponents’ goals, and for that reason. he was a victim of offensive and even racist messages on social networks. Suzuki also had to deactivate comments on his Instagram profile after the match against Vietnam. Coach Hajime Moriyasu and the Japan Football Association they were condemned these comments. Because of its origin, at home Suzuki is considered a hฤfua term used to denote a person who is half Japanese and half non-Japanese.
ยซWe wanted badly, but it was a long and complicated negotiation. There was a lot of attention around Zion, the interest there was very strong. In the end, his will and ours prevailed, each other was eager to form a bond that could lay the foundation for a lasting and profitable relationship. The happiness is double if we consider that he is one of the youngest talents in a role that already has great experience, found in Japan and Belgium. Today we accept him together with the entire yellow and blue community, sure that the team and our fans will welcome him here in the most beautiful and warm way.” said Parma’s sporting director, Mauro Pederzoli. And if they seem like the usual words of circumstances after the purchase of a new transfer, it is known that Zion Suzuki gave up in 2023, last summer, even on Manchester United, who were ready to take him for about 5 a million pounds. With this motivation: ยซThe game in the Premier League is my dream, but Onana has already been bought by United, and I want to go somewhere where I can play. For that reason, even if I can’t move now, I will definitely want to do so in a few years.”