When Daisuke Yokota spoke of creating “special memories” at Ibrox, he became the latest name in a hectic Rangers summer — and one of the most intriguing.
The Japanese winger is Derek McInnes’s ninth signing of the window, a well-travelled 26-year-old arriving from Hannover with plenty to prove in a Rangers shirt.
So who exactly is Daisuke Yokota, and what does he bring to the Light Blues?
Who is Daisuke Yokota?
Daisuke Yokota is a 26-year-old attacker who has joined Rangers on a three-year deal, with the option of a further year, to become the club’s ninth summer signing.
He will wear the No. 17 shirt at Ibrox.
What stands out most is the journey. Yokota moved to Germany as a teenager and had spells with FSV Frankfurt and Carl Zeiss Jena before broadening his experience still further with Valmiera in Latvia and Gornik Zabrze in Poland.
A move to Belgian side Gent followed in 2024, but he was unable to establish himself there and was loaned out to Kaiserslautern and then Hannover.
The German second-tier club liked what they saw enough to sign him permanently earlier this summer — only for Rangers to swoop soon after.
You can read more on Rangers’ move to land Yokota and how Hannover supporters reacted to the sale.
What Daisuke Yokota brings
Yokota is coming off the most productive season of his career.
He made 31 appearances in his sole campaign with Hannover in the 2. Bundesliga, contributing five goals and four assists.
Those are respectable rather than eye-catching figures. They are worth keeping in perspective – the German second tier is a solid standard, but it is not the very top level, and Yokota’s output there was steady rather than spectacular.
McInnes, though, is clearly buying the profile as much as the raw returns.
“Daisuke is a player we have been aware of for some time and he brings qualities that we believe will really strengthen our attacking options, said the Rangers manager.
Filling a gap on the flank
The timing of the signing tells its own story. Djeidi Gassama and on-loan Tottenham youngster Mikey Moore were Rangers’ main wide options last season, but Moore has since returned to his parent club, thinning out the manager’s choices in the wide areas.
Findlay Curtis is back at Ibrox after a loan spell at Kilmarnock and started ahead of Gassama in the opening-day draw at Dundee United, but McInnes clearly wanted more competition and more end product on the flanks.
Yokota, alongside the earlier exit of Oliver Antman, arrives to help fill exactly that void.
The questions Yokota must answer
There is a healthy dose of realism required here. A well-travelled career that has taken in six clubs across five countries by the age of 26 suggests a player still searching for a home where he can truly settle and kick on.
His numbers, while improved, do not scream of a game-changer, and the step up from the 2. Bundesliga to the intensity of the Scottish Premiership, the Old Firm and European football is a significant one.
There is also the matter of expectation. Yokota is not a senior Japan international, and he arrives without the fanfare that has accompanied some previous Ibrox signings.
That could work in his favour – little pressure, room to grow – but at a club where patience is in short supply, he will need to show his quality quickly. If he does, Rangers may have unearthed excellent value. If he does not, the questions will come fast.
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