Shinji Ono

Shinji Ono (小野 伸二) is a Japanese former professional footballer.

He was part of the squads for the 1998, 2002 and 2006 World Cups.

Ono grew up in the Shizuoka Prefecture and began his professional career with Urawa Reds in the J1 League in 1998.

The same year, he became the youngest Japanese player to play at 1998 World Cup, at age 18.

He caught the attention of foreign clubs with his performance at the 1999 World Youth Championship in Nigeria, where he captained the Japanese Under-20 side that reached the final.

But later that year, he suffered a severe knee injury in a qualification match for the 2000 Olympics with Japan's Under-23 side, forcing him to miss the rest of the season and Olympic qualifying.

He started his senior career with J1 League side Urawa Reds before moving Dutch side Feyenoord in 2001 where he won the UEFA Cup in 2002.

After a strong performance at the 2001 Confederations Cup, Ono moved to Feyenoord of the Dutch Eredivisie in 2001.

In his first season, he helped Feyenoord win the 2002 UEFA Cup, making him the first Japanese in history to win a European trophy.

However, a string of injuries kept him sidelined for long periods.

After he missed the majority of 2004–05, the club sold him.

His stint at the Rotterdam based club is highly rated and Dutch midfielder Wesley Sneijder said "Shinji Ono is the toughest opponent I've ever faced".

He returned to Urawa Reds in 2006 where he won the 2006 J League title in his first season back at the club and the 2007 AFC Champions League in his second season.

On 13 January 2006, Ono returned to the J1 League, signing a three-year deal with his former club Urawa Reds.

He moved to Bundesliga side Bochum in January 2008 but made limited appearances due to injuries.

In the 2008 January transfer window, Ono returned to Europe, signing with Bundesliga's Bochum.

On 3 February 2008, Ono made his Bundesliga debut in an away game against Werder Bremen, and he had two assists that helped Bochum with their first ever win over Bremen at Weserstadion.

Ono suffered injuries in the following two years in Bochum, and could only play 34 matches in which he gave four assists for the club.

In the winter break of 2009–10, Ono requested a return to Japan for personal reasons.

Different Japanese clubs were interested in the midfielder.

Bochum allowed him to leave under the condition that they could find a successor.

He signed for Shimizu S-Pulse in January 2010.

He subsequently played for Western Sydney Wanderers, Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo and Ryukyu before retiring in 2023.

He earned 56 caps for the Japan national team.

On 9 January 2010, Ono returned to his native Shizuoka Prefecture by signing for Shimizu S-Pulse.

The transfer fee were rumored to be €300,000 for the midfielder whose contract in Bochum expired in the summer of 2010.

In an interview he declared that the main reason for his transfer was his wish to reunite with his wife and children, who were still living in Japan.

On 28 September 2012, it was announced that Shinji Ono had signed with new A-League club Western Sydney Wanderers on a two-year deal as the club's marquee player.

The Wanderers were offered former German international Michael Ballack but preferred to sign Ono.

He made his debut for the Wanderers on 6 October, in a scoreless draw against Central Coast Mariners, in the first game of the season.

Ono scored his first goal for the club with a penalty in round 10 against Brisbane Roar.

Ono scored two stunning goals to help the Wanderers beat Melbourne Victory 2–1 in round 14 on 1 January 2013.

On 16 January 2014, the club announced that Ono would return to Japan at the end of the A-League season.

Ono will link up with J2 League club Consadole Sapporo to play out the remainder of the season in Japan as the club chases promotion to the J1 League.

On 4 May 2014, Ono played his last A-League game for the Wanderers, in a 2–1 Grand Final loss to Brisbane Roar, in what was to be the Wanderers' second successive Grand Final defeat.

Following the expiration of his contract and his desire to see his family, Ono joined Consadole Sapporo (later Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo) in May 2014.

On 5 August 2019, Ono signed with J2 League club FC Ryukyu.

In December 2020, he left Ryuku after failing to reach a contract extension agreement.

On 1 January 2021, it was announced that he would return to his former club, Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo, as a permanent transfer.

His uniform number is 44, the same as when he belonged to Sapporo last time.