SAINT ETIENNE, France (Kyodo) -- Opening 2025 with another goal in the French Ligue 1, Reims winger Keito Nakamura is steadily going about his business with his first World Cup beginning to loom.

In his second season since joining from Austrian outfit LASK, Nakamura is Reims' top scorer with seven league goals this campaign, three ahead of Ivory Coast forward Oumar Diakite as well as his own tally from last season.

On Saturday, the 24-year-old controlled a half-cleared cross from the right with his thigh before prodding home with his left foot for the 42nd-minute opener away to Saint-Etienne, once again showcasing his clinical finishing during a 3-1 defeat.

"The ball came where I hoped it would. All I had to do was score," Nakamura said.

Nakamura in October became the first Japanese player to score in five consecutive games in a major European league and remains his country's top scorer this term in the continent's top five leagues.

Holstein Kiel forward Shuto Machino, Japan's 2022 World Cup squad member, is his closest rival with six goals, followed by Freiburg attacker Ritsu Doan's five, both in the German Bundesliga.

Long-established national team stars, Nakamura's Reims teammate Junya Ito as well as Brighton's Kaoru Mitoma and Real Sociedad's Takefusa Kubo, are all settling for three goals midway through their respective campaigns, making Nakamura's exploits stand out more.

Already counting an impressive eight goals in 14 games, his contribution to Japan was further vindicated by the own-goal leveler he forced against Australia soon after coming on as a substitute in October's World Cup qualifiers, helping his team earn a 1-1 home draw.

After deputizing superbly in the absence of Mitoma in 2024 down the left flank, sharpening up his scoring capability further in the next 12 months might provide Japan manager Hajime Moriyasu with more positive headaches.

"I was super happy the moment I scored," Nakamura said after his first goal of the year. "I want to end the year with a smile (too)."