Jefferson Tabinas

Jefferson David Tabinas (Japanese: タビナス ジェファーソン; born 7 August 1998) is a professional footballer who plays as a defender for J2 League club Mito HollyHock. Born in Japan, he represents the Philippines national team.

Club Career

Youth career

Born in Japan, he spent his youth with FC WASEDA and FC Tripleter before captaining Kirimitsu Gakuen High School.

Kawasaki Frontale

After the high school tournament, he was signed by J1 League club Kawasaki Frontale for the 2017 season. Kawasaki Frontale won the 2017 and 2018 seasons of the J1 League, but Tabinas had no appearances for the team.

Loan to Gifu

In the 2019 season, he was loaned out to FC Gifu of the J2 League. He made his first J.League appearance in a match against Ehime FC on 7 April, where they lost 2–0. He made his Emperor's Cup debut when they entered in the second round on 3 July and were eliminated by Ventforet Kofu. Tabinas made seven more league appearances, however, the club finished at the bottom of the table and were relegated.

Loan to Gamba Osaka U23

He spent the 2020 season on loan with Gamba Osaka U-23 in the J3 League.

Mito Hollyhock

In January 2021, he transferred to Mito HollyHock of the J2 League.

International Career

In 2016, Tabinas expressed his desire to represent Japan at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

In May 2021, he was called up to the Philippines national team for the joint qualifiers of the 2022 FIFA World Cup and 2023 AFC Asian Cup. He made his debut on 7 June in a 2–0 defeat to China PR in Sharjah, UAE.