A Rise From Japanese Grassroots: How Takumi Minamino Evolved

The story of Takumi Minamino is one worth sharing. Born on January 16, 1995, the same month that football legend George Weah was named the first FIFA World Player of the Year, Takumi’s arrival had a special kind of significance. His parents chose the name “Takumi,” which means “Exploring and Fruiting by Himself.” From a young age, Takumi showed a natural affinity for football, practising with his dad and older brother, Kenta, during his toddler years. This article delves into the lesser-known chapters of the Japanese professional footballer’s life, including how he managed to bewitch Jürgen Klopp. So, let’s dive into the heart of Takumi Minamino’s story.

Preamble:

In a nutshell, our story about Takumi Minamino goes beyond just his on-pitch achievements. We dive into his childhood, his early days with football, and introduce you to his parents and family background. We also explore his lifestyle, personality, and his love life with Reina and Shiori.

To give you a taste of what to expect from our version of Takumi Minamino’s story, we’ve put together a gallery that spans from his early years to his rise in football—an ideal introduction to his journey.

Takumi Minamino Childhood Story:

For Biography starters, Takumi Minamino was born on the 16th day of January 1995 to his parents in the Japanese city of Izumisano.

His birth date coincides with one of the saddest periods for the Takumi Minamino family and the entire Japanese people. Did you know?… Takumi Minamino was born two days after The Great Hanshin earthquake.

As observed below, the Hanshin earthquake was a natural disaster that claimed the lives of 6,434 people from different family backgrounds, with damage of ten trillion yen ($100 billion), around 2.5% of Japan’s GDP at the time.

Being born just two days after a natural disaster made his parents both happy and sad together.

Upon his birth, which happened in a complicated seismic situation, Takumi Minamino’s parents gave him his name, “Takumi“, which means; “Exploring and Fruiting by himself“.

Throughout Takumi Minamino’s early years, his parents reminded him of the need to live up to his name. Speaking about that, he once said in his words,

“When I was small, my parents told me to never lose the meaning of my name. That continually renewed my determination to be successful in what i  do”.

Getting to Know Takumi Minamino’s Family:

Young Takumi Minamino’s family origin is the Kinki ethnic group of Japan located in the Kansai Japanese region, which occupies 11% of the nation’s land area.

Takumi Minamino comes from a middle-class family in Japan. His parents were typical of many in the middle of the social hierarchy, with modest financial education. He grew up with his older brother, Kenta Minamino, in a supportive and close-knit family environment.

Takumi Minamino Early Life with Football:

Minamino’s likeness for the ball began while he was a toddler. As a little child (aged 1 to 3), he practised together with his dad and older brother, Kenta.

The trio would back then kick the ball enthusiastically inside their family home and garden. The whole football thing got so exciting that Minamino’s dad thought about a practice that saw him placing Training Marker Cones in the family packing lots.

This enabled his sons to learn how to make dribbles, BUILDING THEIR DESTINIES IN THE PROCESS.

Takumi Minamino Education:

Did you know?… It was Takumi Minamino’s elder brother who set the pace of the family’s route to sporting success. Kenta, his brother, led by example when he joined the Coober Soccer team while in elementary school.

Having a big brother leading by example, Takumi Minamino was motivated to join Coober Soccer while in elementary school.

While in his elementary third grade, Minamino (pictured below) moved on to join Zessel Kumatori FC. At the soccer school, he met and played alongside his best friend Sei Muroya. 

Sei Muroya also attended Kindergarten with Minamino. DESTINY later brought the two together as they found themselves in the Japanese national team.

The Decision: In 2002, at age 7, Takumi was fortunate to watch Ronaldo Luis Nazario de Lima, Ronaldinho, Rivaldo, and other Brazilian superstars at the Korea-Japan 2002 World Cup.

The tournament created a new chapter in his life. It brought in him a new desire, one which saw him taking a vow to become a professional footballer.

Takumi Minamino Biography – Early Career Life:

On the need to make a choice between school and football, Takumi Minamimo’s parents agreed with the condition that he would not totally compromise his education for the game.

After graduating from elementary school, Minano secured admission with Kokugoku High School Junior Youth.

While playing football in the school, he got scouted by Cerezo Osaka football club, who invited him to their U-15 trials, of which he passed with flying colours. As observed below, he had a brilliant start to life with the club.

Takumi Minamino’s first competitive game with Cerezo Osaka came when he participated in the U-15 all-Japan Club Youth Soccer Championship.

He shone as a top scorer in the competition with eight goals. In 2010, the promising footballer also participated in the Asia Championship (AFC) U-16 Championship, where he also became the tournament’s top scorer.

After high school, the Japanese star took football as his full-time job, abandoning going to the University. Minamino ended his youth career in 2012 after playing for the club for six years (between 2007 to 2012).

Road to Fame:

Takumi Minamino began his senior career on a good note with the Japan Professional Football League.

Did you know?… His performance saw him becoming the league’s Best Young Player in his first senior year. It didn’t just stop there; Minamino also bagged the Japan Professional Sports Award.

Winning these awards can only come when you have a mentor and legend as a playing mate.

Did you know?… Minamino was honoured to play alongside legendary Diego Forlan during his early senior years. Both players formed a cool, striking partnership.

He took the BIGGEST Opportunity:

Takumi Minamino’s biggest stage to shine came when he played against Shinji Kagawa’s Manchester United in July 2013.

Did you know?… He scored the SUPER GOAL that helped his team defeat United (2-1).

Takumi Minamino used a game against United to announce himself to Europe, a development that saw big clubs taking notice of him.

Minamino’s success didn’t stop there. Helping defeat United was followed by him earning the MVP in the Nuti Food Cup 2014 competition.

Among all the European clubs who begged for his signature, it was FC Red Bull Salzburg that prevailed. The club signed Minamino on the 7th of January, 2015.

Takumi Minamino Bio – Rise to Fame Story:

Takumi Minamino began life in Europe on a positive note. During his first season (2017-18), he helped Salzburg to their best-ever European campaign.

Knowing his low-key status with the Unpopular Austrian League, Takumi Minamino used the UEFA Europa League as his best stage to showcase his worth.

The game plan was perfect. First, he helped his team to beat Borussia Dortmund, leading to the club’s first-ever appearance in the UEFA Europa League semi-final.

Then came the eye-opener, The UEFA Champions League of the 2019-2020 season, which saw the perfection of Minamino’s plan.

UEFA Champions League Rise:

Minamino helped Salzburg to have their best-ever European campaign in the 2019/2020 season.

He, together with fellow goal machine Erling Braut Haaland, proved themselves to be the main dark horses in the European competition.

Minamino had an eye-catching performance as he scored against the Reds at Anfield in the 2019/2020 Champions League campaign.

The appreciation of Jurgen Klopp, his Liverpool players, and even the Liverpool fans didn’t go unnoticed as they immediately fell under the magic spell of Minamino. Jurgen Klopp’s reactions to Minamino’s magical displays, as shown below, are indeed priceless.

To the amazement of football fans, especially Japanese and Liverpool supporters, Jurgen Klopp finally won the race for his signature. In no time after joining Liverpool, Tak scored his first Premier League goal. The rest, as they say, is history.

Takumi Minamino Relationship Life:

With his rise to fame in the 2019/2020 Champions League campaign and joining Liverpool, it is certain that most English fans must have pondered if Takumi Minamino has a girlfriend or if he is actually married.

There is no denying the fact that his good looks wouldn’t place him on the wish list of potential girlfriends and women-wife materials who would yearn for his heart.

However, behind the successful footballer, there exists a glamorous girlfriend who, according to most Japanese bloggers, bears the name Reina. Below is a rare 2014 photo of Takumi Minamino and his girlfriend Reina as they appear all loved up.

According to rumours, Takumi Minamino’s relationship with Reina began after he broke up with his ex-girlfriend, who goes by the name ‘Shiori‘.

Personal Life:

Getting to know Takumi Minamino’s personal life facts away from football activities would help you get a better picture of his unique personality.

Minamino has a great sense of humour off the pitch. He is very social and loves to spend time with friends and family, especially those who have a similar family origin to his.

In his relationship with friends, there is no display of “a king of the jungle” status and career ego. Minamimo’s healthy sense of humour makes collaboration with other people even easier. This is the reason why the Japanese is loved both at home and abroad.

Takumi Minamino Family Life:

In this session, we bring you extra facts about members of Takumi Minamino’s family, starting with his parents.

About Takumi Minamino’s Dad:

Information about the super dad who laid the foundation for his son’s career is poorly documented by the media. However, it is confirmed that Minamono’s dad was 55 years old at the time of writing.

The lucky dad is responsible for monitoring every game his son plays and still gives him advice after games. As a way of maintaining their good relationship, both father and son still go to watch soccer together.

About Takumi Minamino’s Mum:

There aren’t many stories about Takuma Minamino’s mother. However, we know she is a good role model and the first person Minamino ever knew.

However, information exists that Takuma Minamino’s mum was responsible for picking him up by car each time he ended football practice.

About Takumi Minamino’s Siblings:

Judging from intensive research, it appears Takumi Minamino has no sister.

We haven’t gotten any info about his uncle or aunt either. However, he has an older brother named Kenta and two other brothers who very little is known about them.

Takumi Minamino’s brother Kanta is three years older than him, meaning he is 27 at the time of writing. Minamino credits his brother for making him never lose interest in football.

Sadly, Kenta, unlike his little brother, never made himself famous with football. He quit the game in March 2010 due to unknown reasons.

Lifestyle:

According to Express Sports, Takumi Minamino’s salary of £2.5m per year can be broken down to a whooping £48,000 per week for wages. These were his figures for Red Bull Salzburg, which definitely had increased after joining Liverpool.

Even though making lots of money is a necessary evil, Takumi Manamino is a refreshing antidote to an expensive lifestyle. At the time of writing, he doesn’t see himself living an exotic lifestyle, which is easily noticeable by flashy cars, mansions, etc.

Minamino lives a humble lifestyle, one that makes him avoid irrational spending and hold on to practical needs that don’t cost much.

Untold Facts:

In this final section of Takumi Minamino’s Bio, we’ll unveil more truths you might not know about him. Without further ado, let’s get started.

A Guinness World Record Holder:

According to Japan’s Good Person’s daily blog, Takumi Minamino is a Guinness record holder since his junior high school days.

Did you know?… He once held the Guinness record for “One minute of continuous high touch with the ball“.

He once rejected his Nickname:

Some years ago, before his fame, Minamino once made clear his own personal preference while addressing his ‘Japanese Neymar’ nickname.

Back then, he never accepted the nickname, claiming he wasn’t good enough. Minamino once said in an interview to Red Bull Salzburg website;

“I don’t want to compare myself to Neymar at all. Should I ever manage to get as good as he is, then I would gladly accept my nickname”.

Destiny brought his best friend to him:

As stated earlier in this article, Takumi Minamino and Sei Muroya are childhood best friends who met while playing football in their kindergarten days. Both took different positive paths along their footballing journeys.

They both became successful, and fate miraculously brought them together again, this time at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics Games while representing their beloved country, Japan.

Without a doubt, the world has witnessed a few of these childhood destiny meetings at national levels. A very good example we are aware of is the one between Mason Mount and Declan Rice.

Takumi Minamino Religion:

Like most Japanese, it is most likely that Takumi Minamino’s parents raised him to adopt the Shinto or Buddhist religious doctrines.

However, the non-existence of photo proofs of his religious practice has made us suggest he could also be an Atheist.

Takumi Minamino Tattoo Fact:

Tattoo culture is very popular in today’s football world as it is often used to portray one’s religion or the people one love.

Minamino, at the time of writing, is tattoo-free. As observed below, there are no inks in his upper and lower body.

Fact Check:

Thanks for reading the hidden chapters of Takumi Minamino. We strive for accuracy and fairness in our quest to deliver you Asian-Oceanian Soccer Stories as we have done to athletes like  Takefusa Kubo.

Aside from Takumi Minamino’s Bio, we’ve got other Japanese Soccer players’ Histories for you. The Life Stories of Arsenal’s Takehiro Tomiyasu and Brighton’s Kaoru Mitoma will interest you.

If you find something that doesn’t look right, please share it with us by commenting below. We’ll always value and respect your ideas.