SAINTS have signed Japanese international Yukinari Sugawara from Dutch side AZ Alkmaar in a deal reportedly worth around £6million.

The 24 year old has signed a four-year contract at St Mary's and becomes the fourth new defensive addition of the summer.

Charlie Taylor, 30, Ronnie Edwards, 21, and Nathan Wood, 22, have all been signed, while Taylor Harwood-Bellis has penned a four-year deal after his loan last season.

Sugawara becomes the fourth Japanese player in Southampton's history, following Tadanari Lee, Maya Yoshida and Takumi Minamino.

Here is everything you need to know about Southampton's latest defensive addition... 

Yukinari Sugawara is Southampton's fourth defensive addition of the summerYukinari Sugawara is Southampton's fourth defensive addition of the summer (Image: Southampton FC)

Who is Yukinari Sugawara?

Yukinari Sugawara is a five-foot 10-inch right-back born in Toyokawa, Aichi, Japan on June 28 2000.

Having impressed at youth level for AS Laranja Kyoto, Sugawara joined Nagoya Grampus' youth team.

He went on to make his debut for Nagoya Grampus in February 2018, aged 17 years, 7 months and 27 days old.

In doing so, he became the second youngest player in J.League history, a record which has since been broken. 

He earned a professional contract in April 2018, becoming the club's youngest-ever pro player, aged 17 years and 10 months old.

Sugawara continued to impress in the J.League. He made 13 appearances as his club narrowly avoided relegation to the J2.

His precocious talents caught the eye of Dutch side AZ Alkmaar, who swooped to sign him in June 2019, initially on loan.

AZ exercised their decision to buy the defender in February 2020 after he adapted quickly to life at the AFAS stadium.

Sugawara played a mixture of first-team and B-team games (Jong AZ) during his first two campaigns - although primarily with the seniors.

During the 2022/23 season, Sugawara featured in every game as Pascal Jansen's AZ side made a run to the Conference League semi-final.

In total, Sugawara has made 198 appearances for De Kaasboeren, scoring 14 goals and providing 29 assists. 

At international level, he has represented Japan from under-15s through to the seniors, making his Samurai Blue debut in October 2020 against Cameroon.

Sugawara has already played at St Mary's. He featured in a pre-season friendly against Russell Martin's Saints last summer.

Yukinari Sugawara battles Sam Edozie for the ball at St Mary'sYukinari Sugawara battles Sam Edozie for the ball at St Mary's (Stuart Martin)

What sort of player can we expect from Sugawara?

Sugawara is an attacking full-back with an eye for creating chances. Capable of beating a man and delivering a dangerous pass, he is a regular chance creator.

He is comfortable hugging the touchline and coming inside to receive the ball in a more inverted position, which he is more likely to do.

Yukinari Sugawara's heat map from last seasonYukinari Sugawara's heat map from last season (Image: Sofascore)

Sugawara ranks in the top 93 percentile for shot-creating actions per 90 minutes (3.34) when compared to other players outside the top five divisions.

He has shown a tendency to create chances from set pieces with an average of 0.88 shot-creating actions p90 from dead-ball situations.

Yukinari Sugawara's passing stats over the past year compared to other players outside the top five leagues.Yukinari Sugawara's passing stats over the past year compared to other players outside the top five leagues. (Image: Fbref)

However, the bulk of his shot-creating actions (2.25 p90) come when the ball is live. He is also fond of delivering a cross, averaging 6.47 p90 minutes (96th percentile).

His numbers are higher than Kyle Walker-Peters, although the difference between the Championship and Eredivisie should be pointed out.

One area where Sugawara could improve is defensively. The attack-minded full-back only averages 1.17 tackles p90 minutes and 0.82 tackles won p90 minutes.

Those are slightly below Walker-Peters - 1.73 tackles and 1.12 tackles won. Sugawara does fare well when facing up to dribbles, tackling them 66 per cent of the time.

Positionally, he has spent time in a more advanced winger role, similar to what Walker-Peters did last season.

At AZ Alkmaar, Sugawara took free-kicks. He could be in line to continue that at Southampton following Stuart Armstrong's departure. 

What has Sugawara said and what has been said about him?

On joining Southampton, Sugawara said: "To come to Southampton and the Premier League is one of my biggest dreams since I was young.

"I am very excited to be here. I played 200 games in the Netherlands and only 20 games in Japan. I had a longer career in the Netherlands.

"It's good to know European football. That league is at a good level, it's getting higher. How they played was also really good because we played in the Europa League.

"We played against Manchester United and West Ham. We played against some good clubs. Aston Villa as well.

“Last summer I played against Southampton in the pre-season. I felt Southampton played very good football with the ball; they didn’t play long balls, only short passing, they played smart.

“I felt Southampton is a really good club. When Southampton gave me an offer, I said yes after one second.”

Upon confirmation of the Japanese defender's arrival at St Mary's, Russell Martin added: "Yuki is a player we’ve watched for a long time and was our number one target in his position.

“He arrives at a good age with a lot of games already under his belt at a high level, including a wealth of European experience.

"He’s a talented footballer with a great mentality, and a character we think will be really popular with his teammates.

“You can sense his enthusiasm and determination to do well – he’s really excited to play for Southampton, not just to play in the Premier League.”

On becoming the youngest player in Nagoya Grampus history to play in the J. League, he said: "I was a little nervous.

"I was playing in front of home and away supporters, but my seniors called out to me. It was a place I've always wanted to play, so I enjoyed the 90 minutes.

"I was mentally prepared, but I was happy to have my name called as a starter, and it gave me an even greater sense of responsibility."

His manager, Yahiro Kazama, said: "Age doesn't matter. He's become a valuable player in his own right."

Speaking last season, Sugawara said: "I try to focus on football every day. I give everything for football because we (AZ) want to be a champion.

"If we want to get the title then we need to focus on training every day. Maybe that is why I have scored a fantastic goal."

At AZ, Sugawara spent a period of time playing on the wing. About that stint, coach Jensen said: "He plays an important role there.

"Because he is originally a right-back, he thinks like a defender. He also brings more width to our game and he has an excellent cross from a standing position."

Why have Saints signed Sugawara?

With Walker-Peters' future on the South Coast nearing an end, be that this season or next, Southampton need a right-back.

The two-time England international is in the last 12 months of his contract and there is a reluctance to let him go for free in a year.

Sugawara adapted quickly to senior football and then seamlessly adjusted to life in Dutch football.

Saints will be hoping he can do the same in the Premier League. At a reported £6million, Sugawara could prove to be a bargain buy.

Losing Walker-Peters will be a blow if he does depart, but Sugawara appears to be a suitable replacement on paper.

As highlighted above, he very much fits the profile for Martin's side and will add continental experience to a newly promoted team.

Yukinari Sugawara has joined on a four-year contract from AZ AlkmaarYukinari Sugawara has joined on a four-year contract from AZ Alkmaar (Image: Southampton FC)