By the end of the season, it was announced that the deal would be made permanent. On 7 March 2021, he scored a brace against Sanfrecce Hiroshima and continued his prolific run of form on 17 March, scoring four goals in one game against Tokushima Vortis. On 25 September 2021, with a goal against Yokohama FC, Maeda became the top scorer in the J1 League. On 6 November against FC Tokyo, he scored his second hat-trick of the season to keep his spot in the top scorers' ranking. In addition to being named in the J.League Best XI at the end of the season, Maeda was also co-J.League Top Scorer with Leandro Damiao of Kawasaki Frontale, who had equalled his total of 23 goals for the campaign.
