{{short description|Japanese footballer}} {{Infobox football biography |name = Minori Sato |image = |image_size = |caption = |fullname = Minori Sato |birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1991|3|2|df=yes}} |birth_place = Gunma, Japan |height = {{Height|m=1.68}} |position = Midfielder |currentclub = |clubnumber = |youthyears1= 2006–2008 |youthclubs1= Maebashi Ikuei High School |years1 = 2009 |clubs1 = Thespa Kusatsu |caps1 = 21 |goals1 = 0 |years2 = 2010 |clubs2 = Indiana Invaders |caps2 = 10 |goals2 = 1 |years3 = 2010–2011 |clubs3 = Puebla |caps3 = 1 |goals3 = 0 |years4 = 2010 |clubs4 = → Gulbene (loan) |caps4 = 7 |goals4 = 10 |years5 = 2011 |clubs5 = Ventspils |caps5 = 12 |goals5 = 0 |years6 = 2011–2012 |clubs6 = Skonto |caps6 = 36 |goals6 = 4 |years7 = 2013 |clubs7 = Dinamo Brest |caps7 = 27 |goals7 = 0 |years8 = 2014–2016 |clubs8 = Bunyodkor |caps8 = 71 |goals8 = 10 |years9 = 2017 |clubs9 = Muaither |caps9 = 12 |goals9 = 2 |years10 = 2017 |clubs10 = Riga |caps10 = 10 |goals10 = 0 |years11 = 2018 |clubs11 = Gwangju |caps11 = 12 |goals11 = 0 |years12 = 2019 |clubs12 = Riga |caps12 = 10 |goals12 = 1 |years13 = 2019–2020 |clubs13 = SKA-Khabarovsk |caps13 = 11 |goals13 = 0 |club-update = 13 February 2020 |nationalteam-update= }}
{{Nihongo|'''Minori Sato'''|佐藤 穣|Satō Minori|born 2 March 1991}} is a Japanese former football player.
==Club career== Sato started his professional career in the J2 League. In 2010,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pueblafutbolclub.com.mx/int-not.php?id_noticia=233 |title=Players 4 year signing contract |accessdate=November 12, 2010 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100725181629/http://www.pueblafutbolclub.com.mx/int-not.php?id_noticia=233 |archivedate=July 25, 2010 }}</ref> after a trial with the Primera División de México club Puebla FC, he signed a 4-year contract. The same year he was sent on loan to FB Gulbene, that time playing in the Latvian First League, in order to gain experience before joining Puebla FC back from loan. He scored 10 goals in 7 games there, attracting interest from other Latvian clubs. In March, 2011 he signed a contract with Virsliga club FK Ventspils for one season. He won the Latvian Cup with the team, beating Liepājas Metalurgs in the final.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Lapa īslaicīgi nav pieejama |url=https://sportacentrs.com/futbols/lmt_virsliga/05032011-ventspils_paraksta_ligumus_ar_japaniem_sa |access-date=2023-11-17 |website=sportacentrs.com}}</ref> He played 12 matches there, without scoring any goals before being transferred to another Latvian Higher League team Skonto Riga in August 2011. Sato played 38 league matches, scoring 3 goals for Skonto during 2 seasons in the Latvian Higher League with the club. In March 2013 he was transferred to the Belarusian Premier League club Dinamo Brest.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.skontofc.com/index.php?zina=277|title=All about Skonto FC|publisher=}}</ref>
In March 2014, Sato signed a two-year contract with FC Bunyodkor in the Uzbek League,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://championat.asia/uz/news/30712 |script-title=ru:"Бунёдкор" подписал японца |work= Championat.asia |language=Russian|date=2014-03-13}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pressball.by/news/football/162457 |script-title=ru:О Экс-игрок брестского "Динамо" Минори Сато подписал контракт с чемпионами Узбекистана |work= Прессбол|language=Russian|date=2014-03-13}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Bunyodkor sign contract with Minori Sato|url=http://www.uzdaily.com/articles-id-27044.htm|publisher=UZdaily|accessdate=18 March 2014}}</ref> and upon making his debut became Bunyodkor's 25th foreign representative.<ref>{{cite web|title=Sato Minori is 25-foreigner|url=http://www.fcbunyodkor.com/en.php/news/sections/club/8189|publisher=FC Bunyodkor|accessdate=11 April 2014}}</ref>
In January 2018, Sato signed Gwangju FC.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.thesportstimes.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=305043 |title=광주FC, 일본 MF 미노리 사토 영입 |access-date=2018-01-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180125135043/http://www.thesportstimes.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=305043 |archive-date=2018-01-25 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
On 27 August 2019, he signed with Russian Football National League side SKA-Khabarovsk.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=FC SKA-Khabarovsk|url=https://fcska.ru/media/news/sostav-armeytsev-popolnil-poluzashchitnik-iz-yaponii/|title=СОСТАВ АРМЕЙЦЕВ ПОПОЛНИЛ ПОЛУЗАЩИТНИК ИЗ ЯПОНИИ|trans-title=Army side joined by Japanese midfielder|date=27 August 2019|language=Russian}}</ref>
As of 2023, he played for FC Bunyodkor in Uzbekistan.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Статистика всех легионеров ташкентского "Бунёдкора" |url=https://olamsport.com/ru/news/statistika-vsex-legionerov-tashkentskogo-bunyodkora |access-date=2023-11-17 |website=Olamsport.com |language=ru}}</ref>
==Club statistics== ===Club=== {{updated|match played 23 November 2019}}<ref>{{Soccerway|minori-sato/75114}}</ref> {| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;" |+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competition |- !rowspan="2"|Club !rowspan="2"|Season !colspan="3"|League !colspan="2"|National Cup !colspan="2"|League Cup !colspan="2"|Continental !colspan="2"|Other<sup>1</sup> !colspan="2"|Total |- !Division!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals |- |valign="center"|Thespa Kusatsu<ref>[https://data.j-league.or.jp/SFIX04/?player_id=10343 J.League Data Site]{{in lang|ja}}</ref> |2009 |J2 League |21||0||1||0||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||22||0 |- |valign="center"|Gulbene-2005 (loan) |2010 |Latvian First League |7||10||1||1||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||8||11 |- |valign="center"|Ventspils |2011 |Latvian Higher League |12||0||3||0||colspan="2"|–||1||0||3||0||19||0 |- |rowspan="3" valign="center"|Skonto |2011 |rowspan="2" valign="center"|Latvian Higher League |13||3||0||0||colspan="2"|–||0||0||colspan="2"|–||13||3 |- |2012 |23||0||3||1||colspan="2"|–||0||0||colspan="2"|–||26||1 |- !colspan="2"|Total !36!!3!!3!!1!!-!!-!!0!!0!!-!!-!!39!!4 |- |valign="center"|Dinamo Brest |2013 |Belarusian Premier League |27||0||3||0||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||30||0 |- |rowspan="4" valign="center"|Bunyodkor |2014 |rowspan="3" valign="center"|Uzbek League |15||1||4||0||colspan="2"|-||0||0||0||0||19||1 |- |2015 |28||4||5||0||colspan="2"|-||7||0||colspan="2"|-||40||4 |- |2016 |27||5||6||1||colspan="2"|-||6||0||colspan="2"|-||39||6 |- !colspan="2"|Total !71!!10!!15!!1!!-!!-!!13!!0!!0!!0!!99!!11 |- |valign="center"|Muaither |2016–17 |Qatar Stars League |12||2||0||0||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||0||0||0||0 |- |valign="center"|Riga |2017 |Latvian Higher League |10||0||4||0||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||14||0 |- |valign="center"|Gwangju |2018 |K League 2 |12||0||0||0||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||12||0 |- |valign="center"|Riga |2019 |Latvian Higher League |10||1||1||0||colspan="2"|–||0||0||colspan="2"|–||11||1 |- |valign="center"|SKA-Khabarovsk |2019–20 |FNL |11||0||2||0||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||colspan="2"|–||13||0 |- !colspan="3"|Career total !230!!23!!33!!3!!-!!-!!14!!0!!3!!0!!280!!26 |} <div id="notes gs1"></div><sup>3</sup><small>Includes Baltic League.</small>
==Awards and honours==
===Club=== ;Gulbene 2005 *Latvian First League: 2010 ;Ventspils *Latvian Football Cup: 2010–11 ;Skonto FC *Latvian Football Cup: 2011–12
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *{{J.League player|10343}} *{{Soccerway|minori-sato/75114}} *{{K League player|20180144}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sato, Minori}} Category:1991 births Category:Living people Category:Football people from Gunma Prefecture Category:Japanese men's footballers Category:Men's association football midfielders Category:Japanese expatriate men's footballers Category:Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Latvia Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Mexico Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Belarus Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Uzbekistan Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Qatar Category:Expatriate men's footballers in South Korea Category:Japanese expatriate sportspeople in Latvia Category:Japanese expatriate sportspeople in Uzbekistan Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Russia Category:J2 League players Category:K League 2 players Category:USL League Two players Category:Qatar Stars League players Category:Uzbekistan Super League players Category:Thespa Gunma players Category:Indiana Invaders players Category:Club Puebla players Category:FB Gulbene players Category:FK Ventspils players Category:Skonto FC players Category:FC Dynamo Brest players Category:FC Bunyodkor players Category:Muaither SC players Category:Riga FC players Category:Gwangju FC players Category:FC SKA-Khabarovsk players Category:21st-century Japanese sportsmen