One person has upstaged Jude Bellingham this season, and he bides in Guipuzkoa, going by the name of Takefusa Kubo. Bellingham has been the star of the show in every Real Madrid match, front and centre of the front covers, arms spread like the Angel of the North to receive adoring quips about his quality and admiring glances for his defiant glare. Yet if there was one person earning involuntarily noises of exaltation at the Santiago Bernabeu on Sunday night, it was the tiny Japanese winger they sold about 14 months ago.
It was in the narrative that he should, after a hardy and exhausting effort to keep Real Madrid to 0-0 last season, take the game to Los Blancos. This was something entirely different though, this was was confirmation that when the stage rises up into the skies and the lights are brightest, Kubo has sufficient shine to not just look comfortable, but to set the tone.
It’s been a curious journey for the 22-year-old, whose CV reads like a career already. Recruited as a kid for La Masia, Barcelona spotted his talent early, going above and beyond (the rules) to ensure they were the ones preparing him for a career. A FIFA ruling forced Kubo home to Japan, where he became a 16-year-old star in his home country, first on loan at Yokohama Marinos and then at FC Tokyo.
That lasted all of two years before Barcelona came calling again, only for Real Madrid to outbid them, reaching the €1m demanded. By the time he arrived at Real Sociedad, he was washed up. Luis Garcia Plaza, Unai Emery, Jose Bordalas and Javier Aguirre got sparks out of him, but every time the Japanese media presence increased, one of them would publicly remind Kubo that his attitude, work-rate or decision-making was not fit for his talent, and certainly not appropriate for a starting spot.
Real Madrid, who are not in the business of trial and error in their senior squad, thought little of selling him to Real Sociedad for €6m two summers ago. Like they do with all the prospects they let go, they did insert 50% sell-on fee clause. Kubo himself, and perhaps this was the key to his box of talent that was lying dusty and underused, has been mentioned on numerous occasions that he too knew it was his last chance at the top level. A little over a year later, not paying half of his €60m release clause down the line is starting to look a little like bad business.
Chop it, cut it, twist it, drop them, Kubo is flying past defenders and enjoying himself in the process. The retirement of David Silva, still with the midas touch at 37, and the loss of his favourite forward in Alexander Sorloth should have slowed him down. Yet their importance has been absorbed by Kubo, who is now the core around which Real Sociedad’s attack orbits.
Time and again in the first half against his former side, he was fed the ball, and he greedily kept asking for more. Fran Garcia at left-back opposite him looked out of his depth. Finishing his night with two match-winning assists, he was withdrawn for the final minutes for Real Madrid’s protection, Nacho Fernandez sent on with a sole purpose. An embarrassed high school bully in an American canteen, the red-faced Toni Kroos found no help from the 70,000 Bernabeu fans. As he went to impose some order on proceedings, Kubo nutmegged him without even the slightest bit of courtesy for his reputation.
It’s true that Kubo tired in the second half as his side struggled to maintain the ball, upping the ante, but his point had been made. It’s only five games, but the Japanese star – the -let suffix now redundant – is joint-second in La Liga for goals (3), 3rd for goals and assists (4), 3rd for through balls (3), 4th for carries into the penalty area (10), 5th for progressive carries, and 6th for goal-creating actions (3), also making the top 10 for progressive passes received (35) according to Fbref. Kubo runs more than he passes, but is posting strong numbers in all of metrics that measure attacking effectiveness. Mere fancy code for saying he’s everywhere and involved in everything.
At the Bernabeu, Kubo set up Ander Barrenetxea’s opener, should have had an assist for Mikel Merino, and was denied one of the great crowd-silencing goals by Mikel Oyarzabal’s offside back. When he comes off the pitch, Kubo speaks with humour and a brazen honesty. There’s personality, maturity and an appreciation of how rough football can be when it isn’t smooth.
Real Sociedad provided the perfect environment for Take to finally exploit his talent last season, and his progress was a pleasant surprise to add to Imanol Alguacil’s impressive track record. This season he is the talent dragging Real Sociedad up a level. The old boy’s club won’t be picking fights with him anymore.
