Daniel Schmidt (footballer)
Early life. Born in the United States to a German father and Japanese mother, Schmidt moved to Sendai at the age of two. He attended Chuo University. Club career. Schmidt played three consecutive seasons as a Special Designated Player for Kawasaki Frontale before entering the professional ranks in 2013. He later signed for Vegalta Sendai, but Schmidt played his first pro match during a one-month loan to Roasso Kumamoto in April 2014. After playing his first ever game with Vegalta in J. League Cup, he was again loaned to Roasso, this time until the end of  2015 season. A third loan was established in 2016, this time to Matsumoto Yamaga. International career. On 30 August 2018, Schmidt received his first international callup from the Japan national football team for the Kirin Challenge Cup 2018. He made his debut appearance in a friendly match against Venezuela on 16 November 2018 and played his first competitive match for Japan on 17 January 2019 in the 2-1 win against Uzbekistan during the 2019 AFC Asian Cup. Career statistics. Club. "Updated to 1 July 2019".