Best Defensive defenders by Season Rating in J1 League 2027

The best defensive defenders in J1 League in 2027, ranked on Field Insider.

Best defensive goalkeepers in J1 League Best defensive midfielders in J1 League Best defensive attackers in J1 League Best defenders in J1 League Most in-form defenders in J1 League Top-scoring defenders in J1 League

At a glance

R. Handa of Gamba Osaka is the standout for raw talent across defenders in J1 League, with a Field Insider Rating of 56.5, and R. Kikuchi leads the scoring with 2 goals.

The numbers a scout watches are the year-on-year jumps: D. Tagami has improved his Season rating most, up +27.1 on last season, while Kim Tae-Hyeon's scouting Rating has risen fastest, +3.7 over the same span. Those are the players whose trajectory is bending upward fastest.

By our market-value index, R. Handa of Gamba Osaka is the most valuable name in this group at 20.7.

Kashima · 24/25→25/26

Most improved

D. Tagami+27.1SsN

Fagiano Okayama · 23/24→25/26

25 players · ranked by best defendersCustomise →

	Player	Team
1	R. Handa Full-back	Gamba Osaka	24	45.5	4666.1%	577%
2	D. Tagami Centre-back	Fagiano Okayama	33	35.3	35±0%	21±0%
3	S. Fukuoka Centre-back	Gamba Osaka	30	32.3	32±0%	33±0%
4	Kim Tae-Hyeon Centre-back	Kashima	25	31.4	31±0%	52±0%
5	T. Shichi Centre-back	Sanfrecce Hiroshima	32	28.9	29±0%	2525.7%
6	M. Tashiro Centre-back	Avispa Fukuoka	33	28.3	28±0%	17±0%
7	T. Kamijima Centre-back	Avispa Fukuoka	29	27.7	28±0%	32±0%
8	K. Anzai Full-back	Kashima	31	27.4	2733.5%	2634.8%
9	T. Deng Centre-back	Yokohama F. Marinos	29	26.4	2627.5%	3123.9%
10	M. Yamane Full-back	Urawa	32	21.8	2244.4%	177.7%
11	Y. Nagatomo Full-back	FC Tokyo	40	20.7	21±0%	10±0%
12	K. Matsubara Centre-back	Yokohama F. Marinos	33	19.2	191.1%	1641.4%
13	Kim Min-Tae Centre-back	Machida Zelvia	32	17.1	17±0%	2629.1%
14	T. Oka Centre-back	FC Tokyo	25	15	15±0%	472.9%
15	Y. Takahashi Centre-back	Shimizu S-pulse	33	14.1	14±0%	14±0%
16	Kim Ju-Sung Centre-back	Sanfrecce Hiroshima	25	13.7	14±0%	471.9%
17	M. Yuzawa Full-back	Avispa Fukuoka	32	13.3	1316.9%	1730%
18	K. Inoue Full-back	Shimizu S-pulse	28	13	13±0%	35±0%
19	R. Kikuchi Centre-back	Machida Zelvia	29	12.8	13±0%	29±0%
20	K. Chida Centre-back	Tokyo Verdy	31	12.4	1258.5%	1846.3%
21	D. Suzuki Centre-back	JEF United Chiba	36	11.6	1278.5%	1054%
22	E. Gyotoku Centre-back	Nagoya Grampus	21	7.5	8	26
23	K. Takahata Centre-back	V-varen Nagasaki	26	6.6	7±0%	37±0%
24	Y. Matsunagane Full-back	Kawasaki Frontale	22	6	6215.8%	3034%
25	Y. Ozaki Centre-back	Vissel Kobe	23	4.2	4600%	3816.2%