Vegalta Sendai on Monday announced a tentative agreement with 17-year-old Masato Tokida to join the club in 2016.

The towering defender is in his third and final year at Aomori Yamada High School in Aomori Prefecture and considered an excellent prospect.

“I’ll remain grateful to everyone who has supported me, and I want to work hard to earn a place in the starting lineup,” Tokida told the club’s official website.

Vegalta are in seventh place at the halfway mark of the MEIJI YASUDA J1 League season, which resumes on July 11 for them when they host high-flying Sanfrecce Hiroshima.