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The story
Eintracht Frankfurt’s Japan international midfielder Ritsu Doan (28) has called off a last-minute transfer to Saudi Arabian top-flight club Al-Ittihad and will remain with his current club. German outlet Kicker broke the news late on August 31 (September 1 in Japan time). Had the move gone through, it reportedly would have come with a lucrative deal worth an estimated ¥1.6 billion a year in salary. Reactions on 5ch split between those lamenting “what a waste” and those welcoming the decision to stay — pointing to reports that Frankfurt’s manager had opposed the move — with comments like “he protected his honor” and “if he’d gone, he’d have ended up like Nakajima all over again.” Debate also centered on whether it was Doan himself or the club driving the decision to scrap the transfer.
Nikkan Sports
[September 1, 2026, 7:19 AM]
German outlet Kicker (online edition) reported late on August 31 (September 1 in Japan) that the transfer of Eintracht Frankfurt’s Japan international midfielder Ritsu Doan (28) to Saudi Arabian top-flight club Al-Ittihad has fallen through.
Source: nikkansports.com / Original article here
What people said
It was the manager's own wish, so it won't hurt him
He'll never make that kind of money — ¥1.6 billion — any other way
And there's no guarantee a Middle Eastern club actually pays up properly either
People were even telling him to give up the number 10 shirt
If he's not transferring, he can just keep wearing number 10 then
Way to make it sound like it's Doan's fault
Well, it kind of is his fault
Though I guess that's not just Doan's issue — comes with the season, this time of year
The fickle one here is Doan
Doan's the one who turned it down, no?
The manager was fighting hard against it even before Doan turned it down
If it was just the front office wanting the money and pushing to sell, sounds like he'll be fine then
Could've been his first and last shot
Why are YOU disappointed lol
Has literally nothing to do with you
If he'd gone to Saudi it would've felt like total defeat
Freiburg's really good at flipping players for profit
A verbal agreement in football isn't legally binding
Well, a club-to-club agreement basically means "once you've negotiated and struck a deal with the player himself, feel free to tear up your contract with us"
If the club has already lined up a replacement on the assumption the transfer goes through, the player is guaranteed to get frozen out — in that case players sometimes move against their own wishes out of necessity
This time there was no replacement lined up, so that risk never applied
But as football fans, I think this turned out to be a good result for us
I support Japanese football, but for Doan specifically I don't think the Middle East would've been a big deal
He hasn't been doing much for the national team lately either, and at his age there's not much upside left to protect
So I don't think people need to look down on it so much
In Doan's case, it's also about his past comments and behavior
No point going now if it means ending his career for it
He's already been to two World Cups and this could've set him up for life — not going is the dumb move
They were saying it was a done deal
Just like soccer fanboys, the football media has a habit of lying too
To begin with, Doan's total income including side earnings is already something like over a billion yen a year
So a ¥1.6 billion salary wasn't that strong an incentive to go to the Middle East
If it were more like ¥3 billion, that'd be a different story
Honor is the one thing worth protecting above all else
If he'd gone to the Middle East just for the money, his reputation would've tanked — at least here in Japan
The club had no intention of selling and the manager tried to stop it too
But Doan was fully set on going, so they gave in
In Germany about half gets taken in taxes, so his take-home is more like ¥500 million
In Saudi he would've gotten the full ¥1.6 billion
Married a model wife
Played in the World Cup for Japan
And now he's back playing in Europe
Got it all — that's the handsome Shogo Taniguchi for you
Taniguchi went to Qatar, not Saudi
Well, but European-based players tend to lose their edge once they go to Saudi
Doan at least seems like the type to keep showing effort
So I think the performance gap would actually narrow
Background and key points of this story
Ritsu Doan came up through Cerezo Osaka before moving to the Netherlands with Groningen and then PSV, and has been at Frankfurt since 2023 as a key midfielder. In recent years, a steady stream of Europe-based Japanese players have moved to the Saudi Pro League, though concerns are often raised about reduced playing time and the difficulty of returning to Europe afterward. In the thread, comments lamenting the reported €17 million transfer fee and salary clashed with others welcoming his staying, following reports that Frankfurt’s manager pushed to keep him. Accounts also differed on whether the decision to scrap the move came from Doan himself or from the manager and front office, with opinions in the thread split on this point. It’s worth noting this report comes from the German outlet Kicker rather than an official statement from Doan or the club, and that the reported salary figure of around ¥1.6 billion is only an estimate circulating within the thread.
*This article is compiled as an excerpt/summary from the 5ch (Entertainment & Sports News+) thread “[Soccer] Doan’s move to Saudi top-flight club Al-Ittihad collapses at the last minute, German media reports — he remains with the club for now.”
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