The Blue Lock anime is filled with rivalry and ambition toward soccer supremacy. The new generation of footballers, in particular, is filled with characters with exceptional skills, distinctive personalities, and unending determination. With the story having the grand project of developing the Japanese soccer team by creating the ultimate striker, the story goes on, fueling every character’s passion for football.
When the vast variety of high school football players gathered in the same place, naturally, a question arose, who is the best? In this article, we will explore the top 10 football players in Blue Lock, while highlighting their skills and personalities with a bit of background too.
10Barou Shoei
Barou’s personality is notably harsh and impolite; he certainly cannot be described as friendly or cooperative. His drive doesn’t stem from a love for the sport itself; rather, he is focused on dominating others, proving himself as the best, and pushing every other soccer player down from the top. He is also a highly skilled player, possessing a muscular build that grants him remarkable strength only that few can counter.
Barou sees himself as a king, and this superiority is reflected in his demeanor. He already considers himself the best striker in the world, and he is determined to make that belief a reality. With his powerful physique and unstoppable personality, Barou has a strong chance of becoming one of the top soccer players.
9Kunigami Rensuke
Kunigami is a hot-blooded striker who serves as a contender in Blue Lock. He started out in team Z along with Isagi during the first selection. Although Kunigami was almost eliminated from Blue Lock, he received an opportunity to return to the contest. This near failure inspired him to push his limits in order to prove himself and make sure he’d never risk elimination again.
He is a quiet and reserved character, with a much cockier attitude upon his return. His powerful kicks, agile movements, and aggressive playing became more pronounced, and he certainly possesses the “ego” Jinpachi says a great striker must possess. With an undefeatable attitude, physical strength, and advanced soccer skills, Kunigami is a difficult opponent to beat on the field.
8Mikage Reo
Reo was a student at an elite high school where he met Nagi with whom he made plans to join Blue Lock and become the best striker. Reo began his soccer journey as a talented footballer who relied heavily on his friend, Nagi. When they were separated in the Blue Lock competition, Reo struggled for a time as he had to find his own identity as both a person and a soccer player without Nagi by his side.
Although Reo initially depended on Nagi, once he was forced to play independently, his distinct abilities began to shine. He is now an incredibly versatile player, excelling in all aspects of soccer, including speed, shooting, and agility on the field. Reo is committed to becoming the best, and as he embraced his own strengths, he evolved into a confident and innovative player with a genuine chance of succeeding in the competition.
7Hyouma Chigiri
Chigiri is a prodigy who was tied down due to a leg injury that happened during high school. He spent the majority of the first selection doing the bare minimum until the last moment, where he found confidence in his legs and revealed his explosive strength. Chigiri’s quality as a player is undoubtedly his speed. No one else in Blue Lock can match his pace, making it nearly impossible for others to stop him once he charges toward the goal.
With so much at stake for him, he never once thought about giving up on his dream. Chigiri’s relentless determination, combined with his incredible speed, makes him a formidable presence on the soccer field.
6Bachira Meguru
Bachira is an instinctive football player who was in team Z during the first selection in Blue Lock. He seeks to find a fellow football player who also has a “monster” within them. A monster that pushes him to get better in his plays.
Bachira’s playful and silly demeanor, along with his kind appearance, might lead some to underestimate his soccer skills, but that would be a mistake. He is great at dribbling, and this talent takes him far in the Blue Lock competition.
Bachira’s “monster” acts as an internal motivator during matches, fueling his determination and drive to excel on the field. Although he now has genuine friends who accept and care for him, his “monster” still provides him with the strength he needs to remain focused on his goal of becoming the best. With his exceptional dribbling abilities and almost intimidating tenacity, Bachira is a strong contender to become the world’s best soccer player.
5Nagi Seishiro
From even before the Blue Lock competition, Nagi and Reo formed a duo, but when it comes to soccer talent, Nagi clearly stands out as the superior player. He excels at scoring goals, is fast and agile, and, most importantly, has an exceptional ability to control the ball and keep it away from opponents. Funnily enough, at the start of his career, he was indifferent to soccer, lacked motivation, and started the sport because of Reo, who recognized his talent.
Once Nagi entered the competition, he began to face challenges that pushed him beyond his previous limits in ways he had never experienced before. When an opposing team defeated him, it triggered a significant transformation, helping him become an even better player. He is one of the top players in Blue Lock and even has the potential to surpass Isagi Yoichi, his ultimate goal.
4Shidou Ryusei
Unlike the other participants in the Blue Lock competition, Shidou isn’t primarily driven by the ambition to become the best striker in the world. For him, simply playing soccer is sufficient, which highlights his love for the sport and his commitment to performing at his best.
He has an aggressive and intimidating demeanor, and his style of play is often violent and physically brutal. So, he isn’t the kind of character that most fans would fall for. With his fast reflexes, immense agility, and tremendous physical strength, he is one of the most likely candidates to win the Blue Lock contest. Ironically, he doesn’t seem to care much about winning; his main priority is simply to continue playing soccer.
3Isagi Yoichi
Isagi is the main character of the anime Blue Lock and shows the highest amount of potential to be the best striker. This stems from his immense ability to adapt and evolve during matches. Despite encountering numerous competitors, Isagi quickly shakes off any discouragement and continuously seeks innovative ways to score goals and achieve soccer greatness.
His unwavering determination, resilience, and passion for the sport position him among the best in Blue Lock, complemented by his remarkable talent. He has an instinctive ability to figure out goals and almost foresee future plays, allowing him to anticipate the next best move in a match and guide himself and his teammates to success. Defeating him is a challenge, as Isagi is not one to back down easily.
2Itoshi Rin
Itoshi Rin is very apparently the best player in the Blue Lock facility. This was also hinted at by Jinpachi Ego, and it’s easy to see why this almost godlike athlete stands out among the rest. With his older brother, Sae Itoshi, being Japan’s top player, Rin faces an unimaginable standard, leading to a struggle as he aimed to defeat his brother.
Rin possesses extraordinary talent and excels in every aspect of soccer, including kicking, shooting, dribbling, and demonstrating exceptional vision and perception. Rin started to seek fulfillment in his personal goal of excelling at soccer for himself rather than trying to outshine his brother, and this transformation helped him become one of the top players in Blue Lock.
1Itoshi Sae
Itoshi Sae, Rin’s elder brother, has already been declared as the best Japanese footballer in the Blue Lock anime. Sae is a serious character who displays very less emotion. Unlike the other players in the Blue Lock competition, Sae is a professional soccer player who has achieved significant success in his football career, leading his team to victory.
Much like Rin, Sae’s soccer expertise covers a wide range of skills, including kicking, dribbling, exceptional vision, speed, and physical strength. He perfectly embodies the “ego” that Jinpachi Ego describes, as he sees himself as superior to every other player in Japan. Sae has already established himself as Japan’s best, with a strong possibility of eventually becoming the world’s top soccer player as well.
Where To Watch Blue Lock
Blue Lock can be streamed through websites like Crunchyroll or Prime Video.
About Blue Lock
Blue Lock is a Japanese manga series written by Muneyuki Kaneshiro and illustrated by Yusuke Nomura. It has been serialized in Kodansha’s Weekly Shōnen Magazine since August 2018. Blue Lock won the 45th Kodansha Manga Award in the shōnen category in 2021.
The story begins with Japan’s elimination from the 2018 FIFA World Cup, which prompts the Japanese Football Union to start a program scouting high school players who will begin training in preparation for the 2022 Cup.
Isagi Youichi, a forward, receives an invitation to this program soon after his team loses the chance to go to Nationals because he passed to his less-skilled teammate.
Their coach will be Ego Jinpachi, who intends to “destroy Japanese loser football” by introducing a radical new training regimen: isolate 300 young strikers in a prison-like institution called “Blue Lock”.
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