She certainly isn’t underrated by Director of Football Therese Sjogran, who didn’t hide away from the significance of her renewed commitment to the Club until 2029.

“I think she’s one of the best sixes in the world,” she explained without hesitation.

“I rank her equal to the likes of Keira Walsh in England and Patri Guijarro in Spain. In the style of play we have, she’s crucial for us. One of the best in the world.

“It’s a statement to the team, the Club and also to the league. It’s a massive extension for us.”

She’d certainly made herself known to City fans before joining the Club, scoring an audacious chip from distance at the Joie Stadium for previous team West Ham United.

But outside of those tantalising glimpses Hasegawa remained – to many – a bit of an unknown entity when she swapped London for Manchester on transfer deadline day in September 2022.

She joined a side adapting to a new era, having said goodbye to several key figures that summer, particularly in midfield.

Georgia Stanway had moved to Bayern Munich and Caroline Weir to Real Madrid, while Jill Scott had announced her retirement following England’s Euro 2022 triumph.

Further retirements in the form of Karen Bardsley and Ellen White, plus Lucy Bronze’s departure left City with a considerable rebuilding job.

Then, just one day before Hasegawa’s arrival, Keira Walsh completed a transfer to Barcelona.

Big players and personalities to replace, as well as a difficult start to the new WSL campaign with defeats at Aston Villa and Chelsea, despite a particularly spirited performance in the latter.

But City had acquired a player who, according to Sky Sports’ Anton Toloui, had all the qualities needed to dictate the Blues’ midfield from deep.

He begins: “All the talk was about City 2.0 at the time, wasn't it? I think fans and people around the league were a little worried about what that really meant but, from day one, it's just looked effortless.

“It wasn't a surprise that she was put in that position because City looked at the skill set that she had and the way that they wanted to play and sort of naturally saw a role for her.

“But I think it was a real surprise just how easy it looked to her. That centre midfield role is not easy, you've got to be able to read the game, you've got to be just as good tracking back as you are going forward. You've got to be able to see things that no one else on the pitch can see.

“And also, you've got to buy into another new coach’s game plan - that's probably a third or fourth head coach in the last three or four years because she was obviously with AC Milan, then West Ham to now Manchester City.

“That's a lot of information to deal with in your head, a lot of pressure moving to a Club like City.

“It just clicked and that just shows the player that she is. Her understanding of the game clearly surpasses most others that dream of playing in that position.”

Fast forward to present day, and Hasegawa’s remarkable rise shows no signs of slowing down.

In her first three seasons at City, she was included in the PFA WSL Team of the Year three times – voted for by her fellow professionals.

Two Ballon d’Or nominations followed in 2023 and 2024, while she also topped several of the WSL charts in 2024/25 despite the Blues ultimately enduring a disappointing season.

No other player in the league completed more dribbles in the WSL or was involved in more shot-ending sequences, while she also won possession more times than any other player in the league.

In the UEFA Champions League, despite City being knocked out in the quarter-finals, she also finished top in terms of interceptions (19), distance covered (11.7km), fourth for tackles (27) and seventh for duels won (44).

Numbers alone don’t tell the full story of a players’ value to a team, but two other statistics perhaps provide the best example of why Yui is so pivotal at City.

Firstly, she achieved all of that – in the thick of the action at the top of the game – without conceding a single foul in the WSL or Champions League.

Secondly, over her three full seasons at City, she’s featured in 95 of a possible 99 matches.

Now 28, Hasegawa has also developed into a leader for Club and country.

Despite her quiet, likeable demeanour away from the pitch, she’s a fearsome competitor on it and someone the team look towards when in need of a driving force in the difficult moments.

No surprise, therefore, that she was named Etihad Player of the Season for 2024/25 and included in the WSL Team of the Year despite City finishing fourth in the WSL.

Rather than being a vocal motivator, Yui leads by example, and Sjogran is delighted to see how that side of her game has developed in recent seasons.

She adds: “I know she’s the captain of Japan and leads by example.

“She’s not very vocal but I can see her presence, I see it often on the field but very quiet on the side. But again, I don’t think that matters in a way, because she shows so much on the pitch.

“I know she’s a natural leader, even though she’s not very vocal, she shows it in her way of playing. That’s what we need from her.”

So, despite all of that, is Yui Hasegawa still underrated?

For Anton Toloui, much of the debate hinges on future success for Club and Country.

Andrée Jeglertz has assembled an exciting young team, with sprinklings of star quality throughout the squad.

Hasegawa’s commitment to a further two years at the Club is an exciting indication of the journey she feels City are on, and it’s safe to assume that any success this season and beyond will have the Japan international’s fingerprints all over it.

He concludes: “If Manchester City have a great season, will she potentially get even higher plaudits?

“I think Yui’s still seen as underrated because, if she's in a team that wins everything, she's going to be the player other than maybe the goalscorer that's going to be Player of the Year, that's going to be at the award ceremonies and on the podium for Ballon d’Ors.

“She has that ability. You see every week at the Joie just how loved she is by the fans, and not just because of what she's like as personality, but because there's not many people on the planet that can do what she does.”