FC Rostov midfielder Kento Hashimoto scored the winning goal in his side’s 1-0 matchday four win away to FC Ufa.

The 27-year-old became the third Japanese player to score in the Russian Premier Liga. Hashimoto joined Rostov at the end of July, having previously played for FC Tokyo in his homeland.

The previous two Japanese RPL goalscorers were Keisuke Honda and Takuma Nishimura, both of whom played for CSKA Moscow. Honda played for the Armymen from 2010 to 2013, became the champion of Russia in 2012-13, and scored 20 goals in 94 matches. Nishimura moved to the Moscow club in 2018 and scored two goals in 17 games in a year and a half. Nishimura is currently playing in his homeland for Vegalta Sendai on loan.

Six Japanese players have played in the RPL overall. In addition to Hashimoto, Honda and Nishimura, Daisuke Matsui (Tom Tomsk, 2010), Seichiro Maki (Amkar Perm, 2010) and Takafumi Akahoshi (FC Ufa, 2014) played in the league, but never scored.

Photo: Artem Gusev/Rostov