Career
Ito is dubbed the "Japanese Thierry Henry" for his size, technical abilities and pace, and is the first Japanese football player to go straight from high school to a European club In August 2006, Ito received a trial from English club Arsenal, where he impressed manager Arsène Wenger. However, his work permit application fell through, and in January 2007, he signed a three-and-a-half-year contract with Grenoble, a club owned by Index Corporation, a Japanese mobile content provider.