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Personal Information
| Full Name | Arata Izumi |
| Date of Birth | July 31, 1982 |
| Age | 42 Years |
| Nationality | Indian, Japanese |
| Height | 1.76 m (5 ft 9 1⁄2 in) |
| Role | Midfielder |
| Past Team(s) |
Arata Izumi: A Brief Biography
Arata Izumi is an Indian former footballer who was born in Japan and whose Indian name is Neelkanth Khambolja. He is flexible in his playing position and can play anywhere on the midfield.
He was born on 31 July 1982 in Shimonoseki, Japan and last played for the Kerala Blasters in the Indian Super League. He is the first foreign national to be selected for the Indian football team.
Background
Izumi was born to an Indian father and Japanese mother and became a Japanese citizen despite having an Indian birth certificate. He started his football journey in 2005 in the S.League for Albirex Niigata Singapore and impressed everyone with his speed on the field.
He came to India as a foreign recruit of East Bengal in 2006 and after a few years in the country decided to take Indian citizenship in 2012. His crossing abilities also make him a good winger giving his team the flexibility to use him in different positions.
Debut
Izumi made his international debut for India on 6 February 2013 under coach Wim Koevermans and came in the 64th minute in the match against Palestine. He has since then made 9 appearances for the team without scoring a goal.
Club Career
After a successful season in the S.League with Albirex, Izumi moved back to Japan to play for Mitsubishi Motors Mizushima in one of the most competitive league in Asia, the Japan Football League. He had a successful stint with Mizushima but the club could only secure second last place in the league.
He moved to East Bengal after this and got accustomed to the Indian conditions after playing for a season before eventually moving to Mahindra United of the I-League in 2007. He played for 2 seasons for Mahindra United and scoring a total of 2 goals and 7 assists in them.
In 2009, Izumi signed for Pune FC in the I-League which was really the turning point of his career as he unleashed his full potential in his stint with Pune. He ended up being the top goal scorer among midfielders in his debut season with the club.
The time with Pune FC filled Izumi with confidence and he signed for Atletico de Kolkata in the Indian Super League in 2015. He has scored 5 goals along with one assist in 11 appearances for Kolkata.
His latest signing has been in 2017 with Kerala Blasters FC in the Indian Super League for which he has made 4 appearances till now.
