Academy Report

The Junior Youth Academy Select team's Italian tour has reached its sixth day. Similar to yesterday, cold rain continued to fall from the morning, making it a bit chilly, but we conducted our usual walk and exercises in a nearby park.

写

After breakfast, we had a meeting and then traveled by bus to the match venue. The players from Atalanta, our opponents, were well-built, and it was hard to believe they were only 13 years old. Additionally, the center of the pitch was muddy and overall in poor condition.

April 24 (Sunday) 11:45 AM Kickoff
9th-16th Place Playoff Tournament vs. Atalanta (Italy)
First half 0-0, Second half 0-1, Total 0-1
As a result, we moved on to the 13th-16th place playoff match.Starting lineup: GK: Numata・DF: Koide・Moriyama・Fukuhara・Kobayashi・MF: Iwama・Miyauchi・Fuchigami・FW: Ito・Kaku・Komura

Atalanta possessed the technical skill to connect passes well, even on a poor pitch. We responded with fierce determination and concentration in individual battles to prevent them from showcasing that skill, but there were several dangerous moments where they broke through on the flanks. However, we defended tenaciously and also created chances from set pieces.
Second half lineup: GK: Takahashi・DF: Ishido・Moriyama・Fukuhara・Yamaguchi・MF: Iwama・Miyauchi・Nakayama・FW: Ito・Higuchi・Gomachi
We started the second half well and were defending effectively, but in the 5th minute of the second half, as we tried to attack, we lost possession, and their breakthrough through the center exploited a gap in our unbalanced defense, leading to a goal. However, our players maintained their pace and did not concede any further goals. We created chances from counterattacks, but ultimately, we were unable to score until the end and narrowly lost.As a result, our afternoon match, kicking off at 5:15 PM, was against Toronto FC from Canada, a team we had previously played in a practice match. Having played them once before, our players remembered their characteristics.

April 24 (Sunday) 5:15 PM Kickoff
13th-16th Place Playoff Tournament vs. Toronto FC (Canada)
First half 1-1, Second half 2-0, Total 3-1
Goal scorers: Kaku, Fukuhara, Iwama
As a result, on the final day, April 25 (Monday), we will participate in the 13th-place playoff match.

Starting lineup: GK: Numata・DF: Ishido・Fukuhara・Moriyama・Kobayashi・MF: Fuchigami・Miyauchi・Ito・Komura・FW: Kaku・Gomachi

In the 7th minute of the first half, Gomachi took a right corner kick, and Kaku scored with a header, giving us the lead and allowing us to control the game. Towards the end of the first half, the opponent dominated possession, and we adopted a reactive style of play. Just before halftime, a simple mistake allowed the opponent to connect passes and score, ending the first half in a draw.

Second half lineup: GK: Takahashi・DF: Ishido・Fukuhara・Moriyama・Kobayashi・MF: Iwama・Nakayama・Gomachi・FW: Ito・Higuchi・Yamaguchi
Two minutes into the second half, from a right corner kick taken by Gomachi, Fukuhara jumped in with excellent timing and scored with a header, extending our lead. Furthermore, in the 21st minute of the second half, Iwama scored with a header from a free kick on the left side, at the near post. All of our goals in this match came from set pieces, but they were scored with perfectly timed connections between the ball and the attacking players.

As a result of this match, our final day's opponent has been decided as Galatasaray (Turkey), a team we faced in the group stage.