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The story
Machida Zelvia (J1) defender Yuta Nakayama (29) has left the team ahead of a transfer to Serbian giants Red Star Belgrade, it was announced on the 26th. The transfer fee is estimated at around 180 million yen.
Reactions on the forum were split over the move: some questioned the football logic (“why go out of your way for a so-so player like Nakayama?”), others lamented him walking away from such a sweet deal (“he’s making 300 million yen a year at Machida”), and still others worried about unpaid wages and tax issues.
Sankei Sports, 2026/08/26 17:48
Machida Zelvia (J1) announced on the 26th that former Japan national team defender Yuta Nakayama (29) has left the team to handle the paperwork and preparations for a transfer. The club says it will make an official announcement once things are finalized.
According to Serbian and other European media, the move is all but confirmed to be to Red Star Belgrade, a powerhouse club in Serbia’s top flight. The transfer fee is believed to be around 1.1 million euros (roughly 180 million yen), with the final details of the contract reportedly being ironed out.
Source: sanspo.com / Original article here
What people said
The transfer fee's way too cheap.
Can't they just refuse to sell him for that price?
He's over 30, so a multi-year deal is a risk.
Weird that they'd even pay a fee to get him.
Must be written into his contract —
something like 'pay up if an offer comes from abroad.'
Obviously.
J1's ranked like 13th in the world, top tier stuff.
Suzuki-shishō (nickname, 'the master') was there back in the day too — brings back memories.
Maybe he just admired Stojković and wanted to play in Serbia.
His career's winding down anyway, so that's a legit choice. Though it does feel like it takes him further from the national team.
And he won't step up playing in Serbia either.
Should've just stayed put at Machida.
and to step up from there to a major league you'd need Golden Boot-level numbers like Asano put up.
If he wants back on the national team, staying at Machida and shining whenever the domestic-based guys get called up was probably his only real shot.
Red Star, Partizan —
both of the Serbian SuperLiga's big two have names that scream 'former communist country.'
he probably got flagged by something like that.
Given his age, this is probably his last shot in Europe.
honestly, by any normal logic there should be plenty of demand for a guy like that.
What are you talking about —
this guy's pulling in 300 million yen a year at Machida.
The ones who look down on 'tax leagues' the most are the 'tax leaguers' themselves.
That's why even Eastern Europe is poaching players.
Machida surely pays the higher salary.
He's on 300 million yen at Machida??
He's on 300 million at Machida and an Eastern European club is apparently offering even more than that.
Poland and the rest of the region must be getting rich.
No way they're paying more than that.
Wait, what happens with taxes at that rate then, lol
200 million yen, 3-year deal.
Though taxes are low in Serbia.
In Japan isn't the rate like 60% on 300 million?
Probably to recover from an injury.
Then go beat Machida, lol
Splitting an already-cheap transfer fee over 3 years, lol
Doubtful they'll pay the whole thing.
Background and Key Points
Machida Zelvia is the J.League club owned by mobile-gaming giant DeNA, whose deep pockets fueled a rapid rise from J2 to J1 in 2024 and a reputation — among rival fans on 5ch — for outspending its results, with commentators here repeating that Machida is known more for salaries than for on-pitch quality. Red Star Belgrade, by contrast, is one of the two dominant clubs in Serbia’s SuperLiga (with rival Partizan) and a genuine continental heavyweight, having won the European Cup in 1991, Yugoslavia’s last before the country’s breakup — a pedigree the thread never brings up despite framing Serbia as a backwater “tax league.”
The split in the thread isn’t really about whether the move makes sense on paper; it’s between posters questioning the football logic (why pay a fee at all for a 29-year-old squad player) and posters fixated on the money, repeatedly citing an unverified “300 million yen at Machida” figure to argue he’s downgrading financially for a move to a league they associate with delayed wages and low pay.
What the thread misses is that Japanese club salaries are not publicly disclosed, so the 300-million-yen number circulating is speculation, not reported fact — nobody in the thread cites a source for it. Readers should also know the low, roughly 180-million-yen fee for a full international more likely reflects an exit clause or a player pushing to leave than the market undervaluing him, which the “why so cheap” posts don’t consider.
※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Geisports Sokuho+) thread “[Soccer] Machida Zelvia (J1)’s former Japan national team DF Yuta Nakayama leaves the team amid transfer talks — move to Serbian giants Red Star Belgrade looks all but certain.”
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