Shonan Bellmare announced that youth academy midfielder Mitsuki Saito had been registered as a Type-2 player last Friday.

The 16-year-old high school student will be assigned the squad number 32 and can therefore make his professional debut this season.

“I’ve played for Bellmare since I was in elementary school and I’m incredibly happy to have been given this chance to make my professional debut,” Saito said in a statement.

“But I recognise that I still have a lot of hard work ahead of me. I may be a small player but I hope to demonstrate my strength on the ball as well as my speed.”

Saito had already been called up to the Japan Under-17 national team earlier this year, and will now hope to boost the fortunes of Bellmare’s first team.

The promoted outfit rose to eighth in the MEIJI YASUDA J1 League with their 4-0 win over Shimizu S-Pulse on Saturday.