Ventforet Kofu on Monday congratulated midfielder Ryohei Arai on the birth of his new baby boy last Friday.

“With this deeper sense of responsibility, I want to play harder than ever before,” Arai told the club’s official website.

The 24-year-old, who wears the No. 8 shirt, is in his third season with the MEIJI YASUDA J1 League club, and has featured eight times so far.

Coach Satoru Sakuma has led Ventforet on a mini-revival in which the team has won both games since his appointment.