Tomoki Iwata
Tomoki Iwata signed for Celtic from Yokohama F Marinos in December 2022. He joined Celtic initially on loan but with a compulsory purchase clause included, this meant he joined the club on a permanent basis in July 2023.
Since making his debut in January 2023 during a 5-0 Scottish Cup win over Morton at Celtic Park, Tomoki went on to make a total of 18 appearances during the 2022/23 season, including appearances in both cup finals, helping the Hoops complete a historic treble for the club.
The 26-year-old who can play in a variety of midfield and defensive positions, previously worked under Celtic manager, Ange Postecoglou at Yokohama F Marinos and joins former teammate Daizen Maeda in the growing contingent of Japanese players at Celtic Park.
After beginning his senior career at Oita Trinita, where he made over 100 appearances and scored 7 goals, Tomoki then moved to Yokohama F. Marinos where he played 66 times across two seasons.
Tomoki’s impressive performances helped the Yokohama F. Marinos lift the 2022 J. League Championship and saw him voted Player of the Year as well as being named in the League’s the ‘Best XI of the season’.
COUNTRY BHOY
Tomoki has represented Japan from under 18 level through to the full international squad.
After making his senior national team debut in 2019 at the Copa America against Uruguay, he played in Japan's wins over Hong Kong and South Korea in the 2022 East Asian Championship in his home country.