Soccer-Kawasaki swoop to sign Thai playmaker Chanathip

He was joint-top scorer at the Suzuki Cup in Singapore and was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player as Thailand defeated Indonesia in the final to win the title for a record sixth time. Chanathip joins a Kawasaki side who have won the J1 League title in four of the last five seasons and have qualified automatically for the group phase of this season's Asian Champions League.

Thailand international Chanathip Songkrasin has joined Japanese champions Kawasaki Frontale, the club said on Tuesday. Chanathip has signed for the six-times J1 League winners after spending four-and-a-half seasons with Consadole Sapporo.

The 28-year-old was named in the J-League team of the season in 2018 as Consadole finished fourth in the standings and led Thailand to regional success this month. He was joint-top scorer at the Suzuki Cup in Singapore and was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player as Thailand defeated Indonesia in the final to win the title for a record sixth time.

Chanathip joins a Kawasaki side who have won the J1 League title in four of the last five seasons and have qualified automatically for the group phase of this season's Asian Champions League.