| Yuta Nakayama 中山 雄太 | |
| Fullname: | Yuta Nakayama |
| Birth Date: | 16 February 1997 |
| Birth Place: | Ryūgasaki, Ibaraki, Japan |
| Height: | 1.81 m |
| Currentclub: | Machida Zelvia |
| Clubnumber: | 19 |
| Youthyears1: | 2011–2014 |
| Youthclubs1: | Kashiwa Reysol |
| Years1: | 2015–2018 |
| Clubs1: | Kashiwa Reysol |
| Caps1: | 76 |
| Goals1: | 6 |
| Years2: | 2015 |
| Clubs2: | → J. League U-22 (loan) |
| Caps2: | 12 |
| Goals2: | 0 |
| Years3: | 2019–2022 |
| Clubs3: | PEC Zwolle |
| Caps3: | 79 |
| Goals3: | 5 |
| Years4: | 2022–2024 |
| Clubs4: | Huddersfield Town |
| Caps4: | 37 |
| Goals4: | 2 |
| Years5: | 2024– |
| Clubs5: | Machida Zelvia |
| Caps5: | 0 |
| Goals5: | 0 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2015–2017 |
| Nationalteam1: | Japan U-20 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 30 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 0 |
| Nationalyears2: | 2018–2021 |
| Nationalteam2: | Japan U-23 |
| Nationalcaps2: | 18 |
| Nationalgoals2: | 4 |
| Nationalyears3: | 2019– |
| Nationalteam3: | Japan |
| Nationalcaps3: | 22 |
| Nationalgoals3: | 0 |
| Pcupdate: | 23:24, 1 January 2024 (UTC) |
| Ntupdate: | 31 January 2024 (UTC) |
is a Japanese footballer who recently played as a centre back for J1 League club, Machida Zelvia[1] and the Japan national team.
Nakayama was born in Ibaraki, Japan. He made his official debut for Kashiwa Reysol in the J. League Division 1, AFC Champions League on 6 May 2015 against the Vietnam-based club Binh Duong F.C in Go Dau Stadium in Thu Dau Mot, Vietnam. He started and played the full match, receiving a yellow card in the 83rd minute. Nakayama and his club lost the match 1–0.[2]
In 2017, Nakayama was named J.League Rookie of the Year.[3]
On 15 January 2019, Nakayama joined Eredivisie team PEC Zwolle on a three-and-a-half-year deal.[4] He made his debut for Zwolle on 31 March 2019, in a 3–0 home victory over FC Emmen.[5] He scored his first goal in the Netherlands, on 17 January 2020, in a 3–3 draw against Utrecht.[6]
On 15 July 2022, following PEC Zwolle's relegation from the Eredivisie, Nakayama joined EFL Championship club Huddersfield Town on a two-year deal.[7] Nakayama scored his first goal in England in his third appearance for Huddersfield, a 3–1 victory over Stoke City on 13 August 2022.[8]
In May 2017, Nakayama was elected Japan U-20 national team for 2017 U-20 World Cup. At this tournament, he played full time in all four matches as center back.
He made his Japan national team debut on 17 June 2019 in the 2019 Copa América game against Chile, as a starter.[9]
Nakayama was selected for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, but he was forced to withdraw from the official squad list, due to an achilles injury.[10]
| + Appearances and goals by club, season and competition | Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Kashiwa Reysol | 2015 | J1 League | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2016 | J1 League | 26 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | — | 32 | 2 | ||||
| 2017 | J1 League | 30 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | — | 38 | 1 | ||||
| 2018 | J1 League | 19 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 25 | 3 | |||
| Total | 76 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 99 | 6 | |||
| J.League U-22 Selection (loan) | 2015 | J3 League | 12 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 12 | 0 | |||||
| PEC Zwolle | 2018–19 | Eredivisie | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 4 | 0 | ||||
| 2019–20 | Eredivisie | 14 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 15 | 2 | |||||
| 2020–21 | Eredivisie | 32 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 33 | 2 | |||||
| 2021–22 | Eredivisie | 29 | 1 | 3 | 1 | — | — | — | 32 | 2 | |||||
| Total | 79 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 84 | 6 | |||
| Huddersfield Town | 2022–23 | Championship | 14 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 15 | 2 | |||
| 2023–24 | Championship | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 24 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 37 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 39 | 2 | |||||
| Total | 199 | 13 | 11 | 1 | 13 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 229 | 14 | |||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japan | 2019 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2020 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2021 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2022 | 8 | 0 | ||
| 2023 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2024 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Total | 22 | 0 | ||
Individual